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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: cap · bear · kid · land · straw · spring · fan · bulb

  1. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. bear — the animal
  3. land — ground
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. land — a country
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. spring — a coil
  10. bulb — for light
  11. cap — of ice
  12. kid — to tease
  13. bear — the animal
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. bulb — of a plant
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. spring — of water
  18. bulb — for light
  19. cap — a lid
  20. cap — a hat
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. land — to come down
  23. kid — child
  24. spring — the season

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