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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 120 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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. The ________________ took off on time.
  6. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. court — for sport
  3. court — of law
  4. hand — in cards
  5. plane — an aircraft
  6. vault — in gymnastics
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. pop — music
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. vault — a safe
  12. pop — soda
  13. stock — goods
  14. stock — shares
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. deal — to handle
  17. court — of a king
  18. pop — to visit
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. safe — a strongbox
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. deal — a big deal
  24. plane — a tool

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