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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.

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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: tear · capital · lie · mine · root · mate · craft · bulb

  1. The light ________________ burned out.
  2. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. lie — to recline
  3. bulb — for light
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. mate — to breed
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. tear — from crying
  8. mate — a partner
  9. mine — for digging
  10. root — of a word
  11. tear — to rip
  12. capital — a city
  13. craft — boats
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. mate — a friend
  16. tear — from crying
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. root — of a plant
  22. capital — money
  23. craft — a skill
  24. root — the cause

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