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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. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — in gymnastics
  2. kid — child
  3. wound — an injury
  4. net — after costs
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. vault — a safe
  7. season — of the year
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. root — the cause
  10. shower — rain
  11. season — in sport
  12. net — for catching
  13. shower — to wash
  14. kid — to tease
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. net — in sport
  17. root — of a word
  18. wound — an injury
  19. court — of a king
  20. court — for sport
  21. root — of a plant
  22. court — of law
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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