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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. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  2. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a grade
  2. vault — an arched ceiling
  3. pound — a weight
  4. spring — a coil
  5. court — for sport
  6. mark — a trace
  7. content — happy
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. spring — the season
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. spring — of water
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. vault — a safe
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. file — a document
  19. court — of a king
  20. file — a tool
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. file — a line of people
  23. court — of law
  24. content — the amount

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