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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: spring · root · pass · rash · cell · bulb · tear · field

  1. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. I've got to change the light ________________.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. The light ________________ burned out.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. tear — from crying
  3. field — for sport
  4. cell — a phone
  5. cell — in biology
  6. root — of a plant
  7. spring — a coil
  8. bulb — for light
  9. rash — a series
  10. pass — to succeed
  11. tear — from crying
  12. bulb — for light
  13. pass — a permit
  14. rash — hasty
  15. spring — of water
  16. root — of a word
  17. root — the cause
  18. pass — to spend time
  19. spring — the season
  20. field — a subject
  21. field — farmland
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. tear — to rip

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