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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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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: fall · stick · bat · bulb · fork · fine · spring · cell

  1. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. bat — the animal
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. cell — in biology
  7. cell — a phone
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. spring — a coil
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. bulb — for light
  12. spring — the season
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. spring — of water
  15. fork — in a road
  16. fall — the season
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. fine — high quality
  19. bulb — of a plant
  20. fall — to drop
  21. bulb — for light
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. fine — all right
  24. fall — to drop

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