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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: row · capital · bulb · saw · plane · wake · spring · safe

  1. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. I've got to change the light ________________.
  3. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  4. The light ________________ burned out.
  5. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  10. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. bulb — for light
  3. safe — a strongbox
  4. bulb — for light
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. capital — money
  8. spring — the season
  9. plane — in geometry
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. plane — a tool
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. spring — a coil
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. saw — the tool
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. saw — the tool
  21. capital — a city
  22. row — a line
  23. wake — a trail
  24. row — to paddle

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