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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 120 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. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. vault — an arched ceiling
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. vault — a safe
  5. kid — to tease
  6. season — of the year
  7. court — of law
  8. fine — high quality
  9. season — in sport
  10. fine — all right
  11. kid — child
  12. court — for sport
  13. mug — a cup
  14. court — of a king
  15. mug — to rob
  16. fine — a penalty
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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