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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: bark · bulb · rash · calf · cold · pit · stock · wound

  1. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. bulb — for light
  3. bulb — for light
  4. wound — an injury
  5. pit — in a race
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. stock — goods
  9. cold — not warm
  10. wound — an injury
  11. bark — to shout
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. rash — a series
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. cold — an illness
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. stock — shares
  22. rash — hasty
  23. pit — a hole
  24. calf — a young animal

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