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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 · cold · mine · pit · pop · bulb · season · firm

  1. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. I've got to change the light ________________.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. bulb — for light
  3. ground — a position
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. season — of the year
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. pop — to visit
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. ground — the earth
  10. pop — music
  11. mine — for digging
  12. pop — soda
  13. firm — decided
  14. bulb — for light
  15. ground — crushed
  16. pit — a hole
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. cold — an illness
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. pit — in a race
  21. firm — steady
  22. season — in sport
  23. cold — not warm
  24. firm — a company

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