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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.

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: racket · mine · rest · trunk · bat · bound · stem · bulb

  1. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. mine — for digging
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. rest — what's left
  9. bat — the animal
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. stem — to come from
  12. rest — what's left
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. bulb — for light
  19. bound — obliged
  20. bound — tied together
  21. bulb — for light
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. bound — certain
  24. mine — belonging to me

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