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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. The light ________________ burned out.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. I've got to change the light ________________.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. face — part of the head
  3. bulb — of a plant
  4. board — a committee
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. court — of a king
  7. root — of a word
  8. court — for sport
  9. board — to get on
  10. court — of law
  11. root — of a plant
  12. land — to come down
  13. face — to confront
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. face — to point toward
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. land — ground
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. land — a country
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. kick — in football
  23. bulb — for light
  24. root — the cause

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