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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. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. The light ________________ burned out.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. stem — to come from
  3. bulb — for light
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. saw — the tool
  6. fall — to drop
  7. degree — an amount
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. band — a music group
  10. saw — the tool
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. band — a ring
  14. degree — temperature
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. fall — to drop
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. bulb — for light
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. fall — the season
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. plane — a tool
  24. degree — from a university

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