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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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. I can't ________________ this cold.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. craft — boats
  3. court — of law
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. cell — in biology
  6. row — a line
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. cell — a phone
  9. court — of a king
  10. branch — a division
  11. craft — a skill
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. row — to paddle
  15. stand — to bear
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. vault — a safe
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. court — for sport
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. snap — to click
  24. branch — of a tree

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