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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: game · bass · march · tube · ball · bulb · court · lash

  1. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. I've got to change the light ________________.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. ball — a great time
  5. game — a match
  6. game — wild animals
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. court — of a king
  10. tube — the underground
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. bulb — for light
  13. court — of law
  14. march — music
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. bulb — for light
  17. march — the month
  18. bass — the fish
  19. court — for sport
  20. bass — low music
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. tube — a container
  23. march — the month
  24. ball — a round shape

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