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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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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: lean · firm · field · hide · bulb · shower · bat · prune

  1. The light ________________ burned out.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. I've got to change the light ________________.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. prune — to trim
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. bat — the animal
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. lean — to bend
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. bulb — for light
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. firm — a company
  11. lean — thin
  12. firm — steady
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. shower — rain
  15. shower — to wash
  16. field — a subject
  17. firm — decided
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. prune — to trim
  21. field — for sport
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. field — farmland

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