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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: nail · bound · court · fan · bulb · tube · track · game

  1. The light ________________ burned out.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. I've got to change the light ________________.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. bound — certain
  3. game — wild animals
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. track — a song
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. bulb — for light
  9. court — of law
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. track — a path
  12. bound — tied together
  13. court — for sport
  14. tube — a container
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. bound — obliged
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. tube — the underground
  20. track — to keep track
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. game — a match
  23. court — of a king
  24. bulb — of a plant

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