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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 · capital · firm · hand · bulb · leaves · date · tube

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. court — of a king
  3. tube — a container
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. tube — the underground
  7. hand — in cards
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. capital — money
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. bulb — of a plant
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. firm — a company
  14. hand — help
  15. capital — a city
  16. court — of law
  17. bulb — for light
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. firm — decided
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. date — the fruit
  22. firm — steady
  23. bulb — for light
  24. date — on the calendar

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