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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. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. I've got to change the light ________________.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. The light ________________ burned out.
  14. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. hand — help
  3. land — to come down
  4. craft — a skill
  5. cap — a lid
  6. cap — a hat
  7. craft — boats
  8. bulb — for light
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. field — for sport
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. bear — the animal
  13. bulb — for light
  14. craft — a handicraft
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. land — a country
  17. land — ground
  18. field — farmland
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. cap — of ice
  21. bear — the animal
  22. hand — in cards
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. field — a subject

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