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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.

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: bulb · rock · fall · degree · bat · racket · mine · date

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. The light ________________ burned out.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. rock — music
  4. bulb — for light
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. rock — a stone
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. fall — the season
  10. bat — the animal
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. degree — from a university
  17. degree — temperature
  18. bulb — for light
  19. fall — to drop
  20. date — the fruit
  21. fall — to drop
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. degree — an amount
  24. mine — an explosive

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