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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: stem · pound · wax · cold · row · swing · bulb · foot

  1. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. The light ________________ burned out.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. I've got to change the light ________________.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — a measure
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. bulb — for light
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. bulb — for light
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. row — a line
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. swing — to play on
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. swing — music
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. stem — to come from
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. swing — in golf
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. row — to paddle
  20. cold — not warm
  21. pound — a weight
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. cold — an illness
  24. wax — to grow

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