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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. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. prune — to trim
  3. court — of a king
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. race — a contest
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. vault — a safe
  8. race — humankind
  9. chair — a leader
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. wind — moving air
  14. race — the arms race
  15. court — for sport
  16. wind — moving air
  17. firm — a company
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. firm — steady
  21. prune — to trim
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. court — of law

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