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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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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 · capital · wax · stem · fork · lash · row · snap

  1. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. I've got to change the light ________________.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. The light ________________ burned out.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. bulb — for light
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. capital — a city
  5. bulb — for light
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. capital — money
  11. bulb — of a plant
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. row — to paddle
  14. fork — in a road
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. snap — to click
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. wax — to grow
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. row — a line

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