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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: fall · wind · row · mate · staff · shower · ground · bulb

  1. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. The light ________________ burned out.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  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. mate — a partner
  2. row — to paddle
  3. bulb — for light
  4. mate — to breed
  5. ground — the earth
  6. row — a line
  7. mate — a friend
  8. shower — rain
  9. wind — moving air
  10. staff — employees
  11. ground — crushed
  12. fall — the season
  13. bulb — for light
  14. ground — a position
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. staff — employees
  17. staff — a stick
  18. wind — moving air
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. fall — to drop
  22. shower — to wash
  23. fall — to drop
  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