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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. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. The light ________________ burned out.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. I've got to change the light ________________.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. spell — letters
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. bulb — for light
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. scale — in music
  8. rock — a stone
  9. wound — an injury
  10. bulb — for light
  11. scale — size or range
  12. spell — magic
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. stem — to come from
  15. spell — a short time
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. band — a ring
  18. wax — to grow
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. rock — music
  21. wound — an injury
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. band — a music group

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