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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. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. spring — of water
  3. spring — a coil
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. wave — of the sea
  12. court — for sport
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. spring — the season
  15. bulb — for light
  16. branch — a division
  17. bulb — for light
  18. stem — to come from
  19. scale — in music
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. pound — a weight
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. court — of law
  24. court — of a king

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