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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: hand · bass · leaves · face · pit · trunk · game · bulb

  1. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. bulb — for light
  3. pit — a hole
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. hand — in cards
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. bass — low music
  8. game — a match
  9. pit — in a race
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. face — to point toward
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. game — wild animals
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. face — part of the head
  16. hand — help
  17. bulb — for light
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. face — to confront
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. bass — the fish
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. bass — the instrument

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