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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. swing — in golf
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. ground — the earth
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. cap — a hat
  8. bulb — for light
  9. wake — a trail
  10. ground — crushed
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. swing — to play on
  13. cap — a lid
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. ground — a position
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. bat — the animal
  18. swing — music
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. bulb — for light
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. cap — of ice
  23. stem — to come from
  24. bat — for baseball

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