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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: lean · bark · patient · cabinet · file · fall · bulb · pop

  1. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. pop — soda
  4. lean — to bend
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. fall — to drop
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. file — a tool
  9. fall — the season
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. pop — music
  13. pop — to visit
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. file — a line of people
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. bulb — of a plant
  18. lean — thin
  19. bark — to shout
  20. bulb — for light
  21. fall — to drop
  22. file — a document
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. bulb — for light

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