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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: season · kid · rest · bulb · game · fall

  1. That was a fun ________________.
  2. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. bulb — for light
  3. rest — what's left
  4. kid — to tease
  5. fall — to drop
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. fall — to drop
  9. fall — the season
  10. rest — what's left
  11. season — in sport
  12. rest — a break
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. bulb — for light
  16. game — wild animals
  17. season — of the year
  18. kid — child

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