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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 120 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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. saw — the tool
  4. ground — a position
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. kid — child
  7. ground — crushed
  8. capital — money
  9. ground — the earth
  10. track — a path
  11. track — a song
  12. capital — a city
  13. track — to keep track
  14. press — to push
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. press — a publisher
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. stem — to come from
  20. bulb — for light
  21. press — newspapers
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. saw — the tool
  24. bulb — for light

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