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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. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. I've got to change the light ________________.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. My mare is ________________ in color.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. bulb — for light
  3. court — for sport
  4. hand — in cards
  5. court — of law
  6. bulb — for light
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. court — of a king
  10. pit — a hole
  11. field — a subject
  12. rock — music
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. bay — a horse colour
  16. field — for sport
  17. capital — money
  18. field — farmland
  19. rock — a stone
  20. hand — help
  21. bay — to keep at bay
  22. pit — in a race
  23. bay — a part of the sea
  24. capital — a city

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