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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've got to change the light ________________.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. bulb — for light
  3. tear — from crying
  4. fall — to drop
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. fall — the season
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. craft — a skill
  9. cap — a hat
  10. tear — to rip
  11. tear — from crying
  12. cap — of ice
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. bat — the animal
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. fall — to drop
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. craft — boats
  22. bulb — for light
  23. cap — a lid
  24. bat — in an idiom

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