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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. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — an arched ceiling
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. firm — a company
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. rash — hasty
  9. court — for sport
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. clip — for paper
  12. wake — a trail
  13. court — of law
  14. firm — steady
  15. rash — a series
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. branch — a division
  18. firm — decided
  19. court — of a king
  20. clip — a video
  21. vault — a safe
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. clip — to cut

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