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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've got to change the light ________________.
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. content — the amount
  10. band — a ring
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. stem — to come from
  13. band — a music group
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. content — happy
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. bulb — of a plant
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. mine — for digging
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. bulb — for light
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. wave — with your hand
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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