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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. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. court — for sport
  3. fine — high quality
  4. hand — help
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. vault — a safe
  7. hand — in cards
  8. fine — all right
  9. bat — the animal
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. court — of a king
  16. track — to keep track
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. court — of law
  19. track — a path
  20. dip — to sink
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. track — a song
  23. row — a line
  24. fine — a penalty

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