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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: bulb · season · kid · shower · stem · chip · face · drill

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. I've got to change the light ________________.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. bulb — for light
  3. face — to confront
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. drill — the tool
  6. chip — for betting
  7. face — part of the head
  8. season — of the year
  9. bulb — for light
  10. season — in sport
  11. kid — child
  12. face — to point toward
  13. drill — a practice
  14. shower — rain
  15. stem — to come from
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. kid — to tease
  19. chip — to eat
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. drill — army training
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. season — to add flavour

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