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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. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. court — for sport
  3. root — of a word
  4. net — for catching
  5. saw — the tool
  6. root — of a plant
  7. net — in sport
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. root — the cause
  12. drill — a practice
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. court — of a king
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. deal — to handle
  17. track — a song
  18. vault — a safe
  19. saw — the tool
  20. drill — army training
  21. net — after costs
  22. track — a path
  23. track — to keep track
  24. drill — the tool

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