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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: fall · hand · roll · row · ruler · tear · pop · bulb

  1. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. I've got to change the light ________________.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. We're on a ________________ here.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  19. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. tear — from crying
  3. roll — a cake
  4. roll — a list
  5. bulb — for light
  6. hand — help
  7. roll — on a roll
  8. tear — to rip
  9. pop — soda
  10. row — a line
  11. hand — in cards
  12. pop — music
  13. row — to paddle
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. fall — to drop
  16. fall — the season
  17. bulb — for light
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. bulb — of a plant
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. pop — to visit
  23. ruler — a monarch
  24. tear — from crying

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