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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. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  9. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. The light ________________ burned out.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. fall — the season
  3. swing — music
  4. cap — of ice
  5. fall — to drop
  6. foot — the bottom
  7. stem — to come from
  8. bulb — of a plant
  9. foot — a measure
  10. fall — to drop
  11. bulb — for light
  12. bulb — for light
  13. swing — in golf
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. net — in sport
  16. cap — a lid
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. row — to paddle
  19. row — a line
  20. swing — to play on
  21. net — for catching
  22. cap — a hat
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. stem — of a plant

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