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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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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: cold · wind · bulb · bound · trunk · pass · face · stem

  1. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to spend time
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. face — to confront
  4. face — to point toward
  5. bound — obliged
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. cold — an illness
  8. bulb — for light
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. wind — moving air
  11. stem — to come from
  12. bound — tied together
  13. wind — moving air
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. pass — to succeed
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. bound — certain
  18. pass — a permit
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. face — part of the head
  21. bulb — for light
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. cold — not warm
  24. cold — the Cold War

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