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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: chip · court · vault · tear · swing · lean

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  3. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. vault — an arched ceiling
  3. vault — in gymnastics
  4. chip — to eat
  5. swing — music
  6. court — of law
  7. chip — for betting
  8. vault — a safe
  9. court — of a king
  10. tear — from crying
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. lean — thin
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. swing — to play on
  15. lean — to bend
  16. swing — in golf
  17. tear — from crying
  18. tear — to rip

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