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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. tear — from crying
  3. tear — to rip
  4. press — newspapers
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. swing — in golf
  7. tear — from crying
  8. bulb — for light
  9. spring — the season
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. press — a publisher
  12. spring — a coil
  13. drill — a practice
  14. swing — music
  15. drill — army training
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. drill — the tool
  18. press — to push
  19. spring — of water
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. bat — the animal
  22. bulb — for light
  23. swing — to play on
  24. date — the fruit

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