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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: field · mine · row · shower · cap · prune · bulb · lie

  1. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. I've got to change the light ________________.
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. cap — a lid
  4. row — to paddle
  5. bulb — for light
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. bulb — for light
  8. prune — to trim
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. lie — to recline
  12. shower — to wash
  13. mine — for digging
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. row — a line
  16. field — farmland
  17. field — a subject
  18. cap — a hat
  19. prune — to trim
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. field — for sport
  22. cap — of ice
  23. shower — rain
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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