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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: squash · land · bulb · cell · lean · object · cold · toast

  1. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  4. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. cell — in biology
  3. object — a thing
  4. toast — the most admired
  5. squash — to crush
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. bulb — for light
  8. object — to protest
  9. lean — to bend
  10. lean — thin
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. cold — an illness
  13. land — ground
  14. squash — the sport
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. object — an aim
  17. land — to come down
  18. toast — bread
  19. bulb — for light
  20. toast — a drink to someone
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. land — a country
  23. cell — a phone
  24. cold — not warm

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