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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: bat · mug · bulb · kid · chair · court · bound · can

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. The light ________________ burned out.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. bat — the animal
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. bulb — for light
  7. chair — a leader
  8. kid — child
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. bound — tied together
  11. can — a tin
  12. bound — obliged
  13. bulb — for light
  14. can — to be able to
  15. kid — to tease
  16. mug — a face
  17. bulb — of a plant
  18. mug — a cup
  19. mug — to rob
  20. bound — certain
  21. court — of a king
  22. court — of law
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. can — a tin

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