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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. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. foot — a measure
  3. rush — hurry
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. scale — size or range
  6. court — of law
  7. bulb — for light
  8. root — of a word
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. season — of the year
  14. scale — in music
  15. court — of a king
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. bulb — of a plant
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. bulb — for light
  20. root — of a plant
  21. dip — to dunk
  22. season — in sport
  23. root — the cause
  24. dip — to sink

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