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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. mark — a trace
  3. court — of law
  4. snap — to click
  5. court — for sport
  6. chest — of your body
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. mark — a grade
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. mark — to pay attention
  13. chest — a box
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. court — of a king
  16. vault — a safe
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. chest — of your body

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