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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: deal · stem · fork · pitch · march · season · bulb · cold

  1. The light ________________ burned out.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. I've got to change the light ________________.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. march — the month
  3. cold — an illness
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. cold — not warm
  8. bulb — for light
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. bulb — of a plant
  12. deal — to handle
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. stem — to come from
  15. season — of the year
  16. fork — in a road
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. season — in sport
  19. march — the month
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. pitch — completely
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. march — music
  24. deal — a big deal

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