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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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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: bulb · court · swing · roll · root · pound · perch · file

  1. David sat on the ________________.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. I've got to change the light ________________.
  5. We're on a ________________ here.
  6. The light ________________ burned out.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. perch — the fish
  4. bulb — for light
  5. roll — on a roll
  6. bulb — for light
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. file — a tool
  10. root — of a plant
  11. court — for sport
  12. pound — a weight
  13. file — a document
  14. court — of law
  15. court — of a king
  16. root — the cause
  17. swing — in golf
  18. root — of a word
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. roll — a cake
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. file — a line of people
  23. roll — a list
  24. swing — music

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