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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 116 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'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  4. The light ________________ burned out.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. Where did you ________________ them?
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  22. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. game — a match
  3. firm — a company
  4. bulb — for light
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. mug — to rob
  8. spring — the season
  9. mug — a cup
  10. saw — the tool
  11. court — for sport
  12. land — a country
  13. saw — the tool
  14. firm — steady
  15. spring — of water
  16. bulb — for light
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. spring — a coil
  19. court — of law
  20. game — wild animals
  21. firm — decided
  22. mug — a face
  23. court — of a king
  24. land — to come down

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