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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 120 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
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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: rest · court · coach · stem · wake · bulb · content · land

  1. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. I've got to change the light ________________.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. court — for sport
  3. land — a country
  4. land — ground
  5. bulb — for light
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. land — to come down
  9. stem — to come from
  10. bulb — for light
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. rest — what's left
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. wake — a trail
  15. rest — what's left
  16. rest — a break
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. court — of a king
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. content — the amount
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. court — of law
  23. content — happy
  24. coach — a trainer

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