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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: land · trunk · cabinet · bear · ground · rock · bulb · clip

  1. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. I've got to change the light ________________.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. land — ground
  3. rock — a stone
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. ground — crushed
  6. ground — a position
  7. clip — to cut
  8. bulb — for light
  9. land — to come down
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. clip — a video
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. clip — for paper
  15. bear — the animal
  16. ground — the earth
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. land — a country
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. bear — the animal
  22. bulb — for light
  23. rock — music
  24. bulb — of a plant

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