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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. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. court — of law
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. ball — a great time
  6. snap — to click
  7. ball — a dance
  8. band — a music group
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. mine — for digging
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. vault — a safe
  14. land — a country
  15. pound — a weight
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. band — a ring
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. land — to come down
  23. land — ground
  24. court — for sport

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