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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: bulb · net · degree · stem · chair · fan · ground · pop

  1. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. The light ________________ burned out.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. bulb — for light
  5. pop — to visit
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. degree — from a university
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. pop — music
  10. degree — temperature
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. ground — a position
  13. bulb — for light
  14. ground — the earth
  15. ground — crushed
  16. net — for catching
  17. chair — a leader
  18. pop — soda
  19. stem — to come from
  20. degree — an amount
  21. net — in sport
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. net — after costs

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