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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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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: bear · fork · clip · bulb · lean · bank · last · court

  1. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. court — of a king
  3. clip — for paper
  4. lean — to bend
  5. court — for sport
  6. bank — for money
  7. last — final
  8. clip — a video
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. lean — thin
  11. bulb — for light
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. clip — to cut
  14. court — of law
  15. bulb — of a plant
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. fork — in a road
  18. bank — for money
  19. last — finally
  20. bank — of a river
  21. last — to go on
  22. bear — the animal
  23. bear — the animal
  24. bulb — for light

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