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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 116 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. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. I've got to change the light ________________.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. court — of law
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. row — a line
  6. bulb — for light
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. ball — a great time
  10. ball — a dance
  11. court — for sport
  12. court — of a king
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. snap — to click
  16. row — to paddle
  17. bulb — for light
  18. snap — to snap out of it

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