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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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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: mine · kid · racket · bulb · pitch · rest · bowl · fall

  1. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. I've got to change the light ________________.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. mine — for digging
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. kid — to tease
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. bulb — for light
  11. rest — a break
  12. fall — to drop
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. kid — child
  15. fall — the season
  16. bulb — for light
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. rest — what's left
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. pitch — completely
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. rest — what's left
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. bulb — of a plant

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