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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. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. rock — music
  3. present — a gift
  4. rock — a stone
  5. cell — a phone
  6. spell — letters
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. cell — in biology
  10. ball — a dance
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. court — of law
  13. vault — a safe
  14. mine — for digging
  15. court — for sport
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. present — there
  18. court — of a king
  19. ball — a great time
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. spell — magic
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. spell — a short time

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