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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 goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  4. I've got to change the light ________________.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. bulb — of a plant
  4. bulb — for light
  5. spring — the season
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. spring — of water
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. scale — in music
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. scale — size or range
  19. prune — to trim
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. bulb — for light
  23. prune — to trim
  24. spring — a coil

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