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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. pass — a permit
  3. deal — to handle
  4. drill — the tool
  5. court — of a king
  6. deal — a big deal
  7. kid — to tease
  8. vault — a safe
  9. drill — a practice
  10. perch — the fish
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. court — of law
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. drill — army training
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. rash — a series
  21. rash — hasty
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. kid — child

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