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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: court · calf · content · bulb · track · pitch · saw · mark

  1. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. I've got to change the light ________________.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. track — a path
  3. court — of a king
  4. track — to keep track
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. court — of law
  7. track — a song
  8. content — happy
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. bulb — for light
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. court — for sport
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. content — the amount
  16. mark — a trace
  17. saw — the tool
  18. mark — a grade
  19. bulb — for light
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. pitch — completely
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. saw — the tool

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