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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. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. mate — a partner
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. tear — to rip
  6. mate — to breed
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. degree — from a university
  9. mate — a friend
  10. degree — temperature
  11. root — of a plant
  12. court — for sport
  13. root — of a word
  14. tear — from crying
  15. degree — an amount
  16. nail — on a finger
  17. root — the cause
  18. tear — from crying
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. bulb — for light
  22. bulb — for light
  23. court — of a king
  24. court — of law

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