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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. ball — a dance
  3. stock — shares
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. vault — in gymnastics
  6. spell — a short time
  7. vault — a safe
  8. sharp — clever
  9. fine — high quality
  10. spell — magic
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. fine — all right
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. rash — a series
  16. ball — a great time
  17. rash — hasty
  18. perch — the fish
  19. stock — goods
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. ball — a round shape

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