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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 120 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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. rash — a series
  5. court — of law
  6. club — a group
  7. pop — to visit
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. saw — the tool
  10. perch — the fish
  11. pop — music
  12. pop — soda
  13. vault — in gymnastics
  14. rash — hasty
  15. season — in sport
  16. club — for dancing
  17. season — of the year
  18. club — for golf
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. saw — the tool
  21. court — of a king
  22. vault — a safe
  23. rash — on the skin
  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