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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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468
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: fan · shower · bulb · fine · kid · stem · leaves · file

  1. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. file — a tool
  3. bulb — for light
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. stem — to come from
  7. file — a document
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. fine — high quality
  10. kid — child
  11. bulb — of a plant
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. fine — all right
  14. bulb — for light
  15. kid — to tease
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. leaves — of a tree
  18. file — a line of people
  19. shower — to wash
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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