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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: wave · perch · spring · root · cold · ground · bulb · bear

  1. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. cold — an illness
  4. cold — not warm
  5. spring — of water
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. root — of a plant
  8. root — of a word
  9. bear — the animal
  10. ground — a position
  11. bear — the animal
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. spring — a coil
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. ground — crushed
  16. root — the cause
  17. bulb — of a plant
  18. ground — the earth
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. bulb — for light
  21. perch — the fish
  22. spring — the season
  23. bulb — for light
  24. perch — for a bird

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