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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.

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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: bear · mark · race · cell · nail · present · court · bulb

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. cell — a phone
  3. bulb — for light
  4. bear — the animal
  5. cell — in biology
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. mark — a grade
  8. present — there
  9. mark — a trace
  10. bulb — for light
  11. bear — the animal
  12. race — a contest
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. bulb — of a plant
  15. court — of a king
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. race — the arms race
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. present — the time now
  21. court — of law
  22. bear — to put up with
  23. present — a gift
  24. race — humankind

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