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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. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. When was this ________________ built?
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. The light ________________ burned out.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. court — of law
  3. swing — to play on
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. fall — the season
  6. chest — of your body
  7. court — of a king
  8. swing — music
  9. court — for sport
  10. chest — of your body
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. swing — in golf
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. fall — to drop
  15. chest — a box
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. bulb — for light
  19. mine — for digging
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. fall — to drop
  22. bulb — for light
  23. temple — side of the head
  24. mine — an explosive

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