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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: kid · fine · lean · game · stock · spell · bulb · swing

  1. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. The light ________________ burned out.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. I've got to change the light ________________.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — a penalty
  2. stock — shares
  3. kid — to tease
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. bulb — for light
  6. kid — child
  7. bulb — for light
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. game — a match
  10. lean — thin
  11. swing — in golf
  12. fine — high quality
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. spell — magic
  15. lean — to bend
  16. stock — goods
  17. spell — a short time
  18. game — wild animals
  19. fine — all right
  20. swing — to play on
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. swing — music
  23. spell — letters
  24. lean — to rest against

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