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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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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: foot · last · fan · bulb · calf · ground · stem · file

  1. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  2. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — of the leg
  2. foot — a measure
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. last — final
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. last — finally
  7. ground — crushed
  8. bulb — for light
  9. stem — to come from
  10. file — a line of people
  11. file — a document
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. ground — the earth
  17. bulb — of a plant
  18. last — to go on
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. bulb — for light
  21. file — a tool
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. ground — a position

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