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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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. The light ________________ burned out.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. bat — the animal
  3. row — a line
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. cap — a hat
  6. ground — crushed
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. row — to paddle
  10. ground — the earth
  11. bulb — for light
  12. file — a line of people
  13. bulb — for light
  14. ground — a position
  15. file — a document
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. bulb — of a plant
  18. cap — a lid
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. cap — of ice
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. stem — to come from
  24. calf — a young animal

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