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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. This piece is in a major ________________.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. key — in music
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. wind — moving air
  6. file — a line of people
  7. wind — moving air
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. tear — from crying
  11. row — a line
  12. row — to paddle
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. file — a tool
  15. tear — to rip
  16. key — the most important part
  17. stem — to come from
  18. file — a document
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. bulb — for light
  21. key — for a lock
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. bulb — for light
  24. tear — from crying

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com