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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: cold · firm · wound · bulb · fall · leaves · court · bay

  1. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. My mare is ________________ in color.
  12. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  13. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  14. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  15. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. court — of a king
  3. fall — to drop
  4. wound — an injury
  5. fall — to drop
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. cold — an illness
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. fall — the season
  11. bay — a horse colour
  12. firm — steady
  13. firm — decided
  14. leaves — lets stay
  15. bulb — of a plant
  16. bulb — for light
  17. firm — a company
  18. cold — not warm
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. wound — an injury
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. bulb — for light
  23. court — for sport
  24. bay — a part of the sea

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