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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. I've got to change the light ________________.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. bulb — for light
  3. court — for sport
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. land — ground
  7. season — of the year
  8. season — in sport
  9. snap — to click
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. track — a song
  13. track — to keep track
  14. court — of law
  15. track — a path
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. court — of a king
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. land — to come down
  22. land — a country
  23. bulb — for light
  24. calf — a young animal

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