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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. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. pitch — completely
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. ball — a dance
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. vault — in gymnastics
  10. stock — shares
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. court — of a king
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. wind — moving air
  16. ball — a great time
  17. stock — goods
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. court — of law
  23. wind — moving air
  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