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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 120 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. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. The light ________________ burned out.
  19. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. rash — hasty
  3. bulb — for light
  4. pop — soda
  5. court — for sport
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. pop — to visit
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. rash — a series
  10. kid — child
  11. pop — music
  12. court — of law
  13. kid — to tease
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. dip — to sink
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. bulb — for light
  19. bulb — of a plant
  20. cell — in biology
  21. cell — a phone
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. cell — in a prison

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