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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 116 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. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. The light ________________ burned out.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. land — a country
  3. file — a line of people
  4. bulb — for light
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. squash — to crush
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. stem — to come from
  9. scale — in music
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. bulb — for light
  12. land — ground
  13. file — a tool
  14. scale — size or range
  15. file — a document
  16. row — a line
  17. row — to paddle
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. land — to come down
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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