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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. I've got to change the light ________________.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. The light ________________ burned out.
  4. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. march — the month
  3. bulb — for light
  4. firm — a company
  5. court — for sport
  6. firm — steady
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. ball — a great time
  9. court — of law
  10. firm — decided
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. court — of a king
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. march — music
  15. march — the month
  16. clip — to cut
  17. clip — for paper
  18. ball — a dance
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. hand — help
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. clip — a video
  23. hand — in cards
  24. ball — a round shape

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