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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 120 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. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — in gymnastics
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. cold — an illness
  6. court — for sport
  7. pop — soda
  8. craft — boats
  9. chip — to eat
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. branch — a division
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. chip — for betting
  14. court — of law
  15. cold — not warm
  16. vault — an arched ceiling
  17. rash — hasty
  18. pop — to visit
  19. rash — a series
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. craft — a skill
  22. vault — a safe
  23. pop — music
  24. court — of a king

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