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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. Should I buy a wireless ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. stem — to come from
  3. bulb — of a plant
  4. spring — a coil
  5. hand — in cards
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. pit — a hole
  8. game — wild animals
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. hand — help
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. pit — in a race
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. spring — of water
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. game — a match
  18. bulb — for light
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. spring — the season
  21. bulb — for light
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. mouse — for a computer

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