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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 120 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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  4. I've got to change the light ________________.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. The ________________ took off on time.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. bulb — of a plant
  4. bulb — for light
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. bulb — for light
  8. squash — the sport
  9. land — ground
  10. rock — a stone
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. rock — music
  13. face — to confront
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. plane — an aircraft
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. stem — to come from
  18. face — part of the head
  19. land — a country
  20. plane — a tool
  21. face — to point toward
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. squash — to crush
  24. stem — a stem cell

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