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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: ball · bulb · kid · field · clip · coach · club · foot

  1. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — a measure
  2. foot — the bottom
  3. ball — a dance
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. club — for dancing
  7. field — farmland
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. clip — a video
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. clip — for paper
  13. ball — a great time
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. field — for sport
  16. club — for golf
  17. club — a group
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. field — a subject
  20. clip — to cut
  21. bulb — for light
  22. kid — child
  23. bulb — for light
  24. kid — to tease

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