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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: clip · stem · straw · deal · stand · ball · bulb · wind

  1. I've got to change the light ________________.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. I can't ________________ this cold.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  11. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. stem — to come from
  4. ball — a dance
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. stand — to bear
  7. wind — moving air
  8. clip — for paper
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. stand — on your feet
  11. bulb — of a plant
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. clip — a video
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. wind — moving air
  16. bulb — for light
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. deal — a big deal
  20. clip — to cut
  21. stand — for spectators
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. deal — to handle
  24. ball — a great time

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