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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 124 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'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. pit — a hole
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. vault — a safe
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. shower — rain
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. squash — to crush
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. pit — in a race
  12. court — of a king
  13. vault — in gymnastics
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. wind — moving air
  17. court — for sport
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. court — of law
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. shower — to wash
  22. deal — to handle
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. wind — moving air

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