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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. He is an ace ________________.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. Where did you ________________ them?
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. kid — child
  3. swing — in golf
  4. mug — to rob
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. court — of a king
  8. mug — a cup
  9. swing — to play on
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. vault — a safe
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. ball — a dance
  14. kid — to tease
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. court — of law
  17. spring — of water
  18. court — for sport
  19. ball — a great time
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. spring — a coil
  22. swing — music
  23. spring — the season
  24. mug — a face

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