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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. court — for sport
  3. court — of law
  4. season — of the year
  5. charge — a price
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. bound — obliged
  9. vault — a safe
  10. season — in sport
  11. perch — the fish
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. bound — tied together
  14. bound — certain
  15. charge — in control
  16. charge — electricity
  17. game — a match
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. game — wild animals
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. court — of a king
  24. bat — the animal

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