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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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Word bank
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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: court · field · stand · bass · tube · mine · saw · bulb

  1. The light ________________ burned out.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. I can't ________________ this cold.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. court — for sport
  3. bulb — for light
  4. stand — to bear
  5. tube — a container
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. stand — for spectators
  11. saw — the tool
  12. saw — the tool
  13. tube — the underground
  14. court — of law
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. bass — the fish
  17. court — of a king
  18. bass — low music
  19. bulb — of a plant
  20. field — farmland
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. field — for sport
  23. mine — for digging
  24. field — a subject

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