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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: foot · rash · pitcher · sharp · swing · season · court · bulb

  1. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. bulb — for light
  3. foot — part of the body
  4. swing — in golf
  5. court — of law
  6. swing — to play on
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. foot — a measure
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. rash — a series
  14. swing — music
  15. court — for sport
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. bulb — for light
  18. court — of a king
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. season — of the year
  21. season — in sport
  22. rash — hasty
  23. sharp — clever
  24. season — to add flavour

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