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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. wound — an injury
  3. court — for sport
  4. craft — a skill
  5. vault — in gymnastics
  6. key — the most important part
  7. mine — for digging
  8. key — for a lock
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. craft — boats
  11. key — in music
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. court — of a king
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. file — a tool
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. kick — in football
  18. court — of law
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. file — a document
  21. vault — a safe
  22. wound — an injury
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. file — a line of people

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