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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 flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. spring — the season
  3. cold — an illness
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. cold — not warm
  7. press — a publisher
  8. press — to push
  9. club — for dancing
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. club — a group
  12. club — for golf
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. lean — to bend
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. press — newspapers
  18. wake — a trail
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. bulb — for light
  21. spring — a coil
  22. bulb — for light
  23. spring — of water
  24. lean — thin

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