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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. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. I've got to change the light ________________.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. kid — child
  3. degree — temperature
  4. bulb — for light
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. degree — an amount
  7. tear — from crying
  8. club — for golf
  9. wake — a trail
  10. kid — to tease
  11. bulb — for light
  12. stem — to come from
  13. club — a group
  14. prune — to trim
  15. tear — from crying
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. degree — from a university
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. tear — to rip
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. club — for dancing
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. prune — to trim

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