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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. bound — obliged
  3. court — of a king
  4. track — a song
  5. race — the arms race
  6. track — to keep track
  7. bark — to shout
  8. bound — tied together
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. track — a path
  12. kick — in football
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. race — humankind
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. vault — a safe
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. race — a contest
  21. court — of law
  22. court — for sport
  23. bound — certain
  24. vault — an arched ceiling

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