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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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. I've got to change the light ________________.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. bulb — for light
  3. spring — of water
  4. bear — the animal
  5. bulb — for light
  6. lean — thin
  7. court — of a king
  8. spring — a coil
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. spring — the season
  11. bulb — of a plant
  12. court — for sport
  13. bear — the animal
  14. lean — to bend
  15. season — of the year
  16. chest — of your body
  17. club — for golf
  18. court — of law
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. chest — a box
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. club — a group
  23. season — in sport
  24. chest — of your body

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