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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 ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. I've got to change the light ________________.
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. can — to be able to
  3. last — final
  4. court — for sport
  5. rest — what's left
  6. can — a tin
  7. last — finally
  8. rest — a break
  9. bulb — for light
  10. bulb — for light
  11. pitch — completely
  12. hand — help
  13. can — a tin
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. court — of a king
  16. last — to go on
  17. field — for sport
  18. field — a subject
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. hand — in cards
  21. field — farmland
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. rest — what's left
  24. bulb — of a plant

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