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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: cap · field · bulb · file · dip · straw

  1. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. I've got to change the light ________________.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. dip — a sauce
  4. file — a line of people
  5. file — a document
  6. field — a subject
  7. bulb — for light
  8. dip — to sink
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. bulb — for light
  11. cap — of ice
  12. field — farmland
  13. field — for sport
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. file — a tool
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. cap — a hat

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