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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.

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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: pitch · bulb · wind · face · kid · firm · court · stock

  1. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. I've got to change the light ________________.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. bulb — for light
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. kid — child
  5. firm — steady
  6. face — part of the head
  7. pitch — completely
  8. wind — moving air
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. court — of law
  11. court — of a king
  12. face — to point toward
  13. firm — decided
  14. kid — to tease
  15. court — for sport
  16. stock — goods
  17. firm — a company
  18. face — to confront
  19. wind — moving air
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. bulb — for light
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. stock — shares

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