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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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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: pit · court · rash · bulb · land · last · face · game

  1. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. I've got to change the light ________________.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. The light ________________ burned out.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — in a race
  2. face — part of the head
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. court — of law
  5. land — to come down
  6. game — a match
  7. last — final
  8. land — a country
  9. bulb — for light
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. court — of a king
  12. face — to confront
  13. bulb — for light
  14. pit — a hole
  15. last — finally
  16. land — ground
  17. game — wild animals
  18. rash — hasty
  19. rash — a series
  20. court — for sport
  21. bulb — of a plant
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. last — to go on
  24. face — to point toward

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