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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: firm · pass · land · bat · current · temple · bulb · fall

  1. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  13. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. When was this ________________ built?
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. firm — steady
  4. land — ground
  5. fall — the season
  6. current — electric
  7. land — to come down
  8. pass — a permit
  9. fall — to drop
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. pass — to spend time
  13. pass — to succeed
  14. bat — the animal
  15. firm — a company
  16. fall — to drop
  17. current — of water
  18. firm — decided
  19. bulb — for light
  20. current — happening now
  21. temple — side of the head
  22. bulb — for light
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. land — a country

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