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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: content · bulb · firm · fall · squash · stem · saw · bat

  1. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. The light ________________ burned out.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — a company
  2. saw — the tool
  3. content — happy
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. firm — decided
  7. bat — the animal
  8. squash — to crush
  9. firm — steady
  10. content — the amount
  11. fall — to drop
  12. stem — to come from
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. bulb — for light
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. squash — the sport
  18. bulb — for light
  19. fall — the season
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. saw — the tool
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. fall — to drop

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