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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. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. dip — a sauce
  4. court — of law
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. vault — a safe
  8. fall — to drop
  9. ground — a position
  10. ground — crushed
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. court — of a king
  13. fall — the season
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. dip — to sink
  17. stock — goods
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. hand — help
  20. ground — the earth
  21. hand — in cards
  22. fall — to drop
  23. stock — shares
  24. coach — a trainer

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