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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: bulb · saw · capital · cabinet · stem · swing · spring · chip

  1. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. The light ________________ burned out.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. spring — a coil
  5. chip — to eat
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. capital — money
  8. chip — for betting
  9. swing — to play on
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. spring — of water
  12. swing — music
  13. bulb — for light
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. bulb — of a plant
  17. swing — in golf
  18. spring — the season
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. saw — the tool
  21. bulb — for light
  22. stem — to come from
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. capital — a city

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