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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. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. I've got to change the light ________________.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. wound — an injury
  4. bulb — for light
  5. cap — of ice
  6. pop — to visit
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. rush — hurry
  9. last — finally
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. bulb — for light
  12. saw — the tool
  13. wound — an injury
  14. pop — music
  15. stem — to come from
  16. last — final
  17. pop — soda
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. cap — a hat
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. saw — the tool
  24. last — to go on

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