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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. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. We're on a ________________ here.
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. The light ________________ burned out.
  16. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. field — farmland
  4. roll — on a roll
  5. object — to protest
  6. roll — a cake
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. field — for sport
  10. game — wild animals
  11. squash — to crush
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. bulb — for light
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. bulb — for light
  16. roll — a list
  17. game — a match
  18. object — an aim
  19. field — a subject
  20. squash — the sport
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. object — a thing
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. trunk — of a car

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