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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 116 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: bay · club · tear · bulb · bound · mine · court · swing

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. My mare is ________________ in color.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. I've got to change the light ________________.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. bound — certain
  4. club — for dancing
  5. court — for sport
  6. bay — a horse colour
  7. bulb — for light
  8. swing — to play on
  9. club — a group
  10. bay — a part of the sea
  11. swing — in golf
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. mine — for digging
  14. bulb — for light
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. court — of law
  17. court — of a king
  18. bay — to keep at bay
  19. tear — to rip
  20. club — for golf
  21. swing — music
  22. tear — from crying
  23. bound — obliged
  24. bound — tied together

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