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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 116 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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. vault — an arched ceiling
  3. court — for sport
  4. staff — a stick
  5. court — of law
  6. court — of a king
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. net — in sport
  9. track — to keep track
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. vault — a safe
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. track — a song
  14. hand — in cards
  15. net — after costs
  16. track — a path
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. staff — employees
  20. stem — to come from
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. staff — employees
  24. net — for catching

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