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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: bulb · season · pass · lie · hand · court · cold · rush

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  6. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. I've got to change the light ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. lie — to recline
  3. pass — to succeed
  4. cold — an illness
  5. pass — to spend time
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. cold — not warm
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. hand — help
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. rush — hurry
  14. hand — in cards
  15. season — of the year
  16. season — in sport
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. court — of a king
  19. pass — a permit
  20. court — of law
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. bulb — for light
  23. bulb — of a plant
  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