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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. I've got to change the light ________________.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. court — for sport
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. spell — a short time
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. court — of a king
  8. rest — what's left
  9. bulb — for light
  10. spell — magic
  11. bulb — for light
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. fork — in a road
  14. date — the fruit
  15. rest — a break
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. court — of law
  18. spell — letters

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