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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: fan · saw · bulb · roll · season · ground · wake · root

  1. I've got to change the light ________________.
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. We're on a ________________ here.
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. ground — a position
  4. root — of a word
  5. ground — crushed
  6. ground — the earth
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. root — of a plant
  9. roll — a list
  10. roll — on a roll
  11. bulb — for light
  12. season — of the year
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. saw — the tool
  18. root — the cause
  19. wake — a trail
  20. saw — the tool
  21. season — in sport
  22. roll — a cake
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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