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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: ground · bulb · stem · cell · rush · wind · dip · drill

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. I've got to change the light ________________.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. drill — army training
  4. bulb — for light
  5. drill — a practice
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. ground — a position
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. stem — to come from
  10. bulb — for light
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. cell — a phone
  15. rush — hurry
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. ground — crushed
  18. ground — the earth
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. wind — moving air
  21. cell — in biology
  22. dip — to sink
  23. drill — the tool
  24. dip — to dunk

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