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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 120 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: nail · bulb · press · perch · cell · tube · field · straw

  1. I've got to change the light ________________.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  15. The light ________________ burned out.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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. tube — the underground
  4. cell — in biology
  5. cell — a phone
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. press — to push
  11. press — newspapers
  12. field — farmland
  13. field — for sport
  14. bulb — of a plant
  15. bulb — for light
  16. press — a publisher
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. tube — a container
  20. field — a subject
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. perch — the fish

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