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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. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. bulb — for light
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. cap — a hat
  7. rush — hurry
  8. rock — music
  9. race — humankind
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. stem — to come from
  13. file — a tool
  14. cap — a lid
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. file — a document
  17. race — a contest
  18. rock — to move gently
  19. race — the arms race
  20. rock — a stone
  21. mine — for digging
  22. file — a line of people
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. bulb — for light

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