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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. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. vault — an arched ceiling
  3. court — of a king
  4. present — there
  5. present — a gift
  6. squash — the sport
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. root — of a word
  10. court — for sport
  11. root — the cause
  12. net — after costs
  13. net — for catching
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. court — of law
  18. fork — in a road
  19. vault — a safe
  20. root — of a plant
  21. squash — to crush
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. present — the time now
  24. vault — in gymnastics

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