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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: lean · rock · cold · root · bulb · scale · wake · can

  1. The water is too ________________.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  4. I've got to change the light ________________.
  5. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. wake — a trail
  3. can — to be able to
  4. bulb — for light
  5. rock — a stone
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. cold — an illness
  8. rock — music
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. root — of a word
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. can — a tin
  13. scale — size or range
  14. root — of a plant
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. bulb — for light
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. scale — in music
  21. root — the cause
  22. lean — thin
  23. can — a tin
  24. lean — to bend

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