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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 116 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: chair · bulb · root · scale · kid · court · pass · fall

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. court — of a king
  4. root — of a word
  5. root — of a plant
  6. pass — a permit
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. fall — to drop
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. court — of law
  13. chair — a leader
  14. kid — child
  15. scale — in music
  16. kid — to tease
  17. fall — to drop
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. root — the cause
  20. bulb — for light
  21. scale — size or range
  22. fall — the season
  23. bulb — for light
  24. chair — to sit on

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