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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: straw · firm · ground · bulb · rest · safe · cap · field

  1. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  8. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. firm — a company
  3. field — farmland
  4. cap — of ice
  5. rest — a break
  6. firm — steady
  7. safe — a strongbox
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. ground — crushed
  10. field — for sport
  11. ground — a position
  12. bulb — of a plant
  13. field — a subject
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. cap — a lid
  17. ground — the earth
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. bulb — for light
  21. bulb — for light
  22. firm — decided
  23. rest — what's left
  24. rest — what's left

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