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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. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — in gymnastics
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. rash — hasty
  4. cold — not warm
  5. degree — temperature
  6. prune — to trim
  7. rash — a series
  8. court — of a king
  9. kid — child
  10. court — for sport
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. degree — an amount
  13. vault — a safe
  14. kid — to tease
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. vault — an arched ceiling
  17. cold — an illness
  18. court — of law
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. bass — low music
  21. prune — to trim
  22. degree — from a university
  23. bass — the fish
  24. prune — the fruit

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