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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. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. The light ________________ burned out.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. I've got to change the light ________________.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. current — of water
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. court — for sport
  5. bulb — for light
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. court — of law
  9. swing — music
  10. bulb — for light
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. clip — to cut
  13. bass — low music
  14. clip — a video
  15. court — of a king
  16. track — a song
  17. swing — in golf
  18. clip — for paper
  19. bass — the fish
  20. current — happening now
  21. swing — to play on
  22. current — electric
  23. track — a path
  24. track — to keep track

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