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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: tear · bound · prune · mate · cabinet · straw · chip · bulb

  1. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. The light ________________ burned out.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  9. I've got to change the light ________________.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. bound — tied together
  4. mate — to breed
  5. tear — to rip
  6. bulb — for light
  7. mate — a partner
  8. cabinet — a cupboard
  9. bulb — for light
  10. bound — obliged
  11. prune — to trim
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. chip — to eat
  14. tear — from crying
  15. chip — for betting
  16. prune — to trim
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. bound — certain
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. mate — a friend
  22. tear — from crying
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. cabinet — ministers

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