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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. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  13. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. spring — of water
  3. wind — moving air
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. spring — a coil
  7. wind — moving air
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. court — of a king
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. snap — to click
  12. ruler — a monarch
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. bound — obliged
  18. spring — the season
  19. vault — a safe
  20. court — of law
  21. bound — certain
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. bound — tied together
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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