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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
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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: season · bulb · mate · saw · pitcher · court · spell · staff

  1. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. spell — letters
  3. mate — to breed
  4. staff — employees
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. spell — a short time
  8. saw — the tool
  9. court — of law
  10. court — for sport
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. season — in sport
  14. spell — magic
  15. staff — a stick
  16. bulb — of a plant
  17. mate — a partner
  18. court — of a king
  19. mate — a friend
  20. staff — employees
  21. bulb — for light
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. bulb — for light
  24. saw — the tool

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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