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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: kick · board · bulb · straw · rest · ground · court · wax

  1. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. I've got to change the light ________________.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. bulb — for light
  3. rest — a break
  4. kick — in football
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. court — of a king
  8. rest — what's left
  9. board — to get on
  10. rest — what's left
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. board — a committee
  18. wax — to grow
  19. court — of law
  20. ground — crushed
  21. ground — a position
  22. bulb — for light
  23. court — for sport
  24. ground — the earth

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