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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: game · rule · club · bulb · drill · leaves · court · stem

  1. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. court — of law
  3. court — of a king
  4. drill — a practice
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. game — a match
  7. drill — the tool
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. club — a group
  13. bulb — for light
  14. club — for dancing
  15. rule — a law
  16. drill — army training
  17. bulb — for light
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. court — for sport
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. rule — government
  22. stem — to come from
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. club — for golf

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