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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
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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 · bulb · pound · hand · last · present · content · patient

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. I've got to change the light ________________.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. hand — help
  4. court — of law
  5. present — the time now
  6. hand — in cards
  7. bulb — for light
  8. court — of a king
  9. pound — a weight
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. last — to go on
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. bulb — for light
  15. present — there
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. last — final
  18. content — happy
  19. content — the amount
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. present — a gift
  24. court — for sport

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