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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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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 · pop · bulb · pound · stick · wind · cell · lean

  1. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. pound — a weight
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. cell — a phone
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. lean — thin
  10. pop — to visit
  11. pop — music
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. lean — to bend
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. wind — moving air
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. bulb — for light
  22. bulb — for light
  23. cell — in biology
  24. pop — soda

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