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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 116 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. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. vault — a safe
  3. land — a country
  4. court — for sport
  5. wind — moving air
  6. rock — music
  7. cue — a signal
  8. wound — an injury
  9. land — ground
  10. cue — a hint
  11. rock — a stone
  12. wind — moving air
  13. court — of a king
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. land — to come down
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. leaves — of a tree
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. court — of law
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. cue — for pool

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