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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: court · rule · club · swing · perch · vault

  1. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. club — a group
  3. court — for sport
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. court — of law
  6. swing — in golf
  7. rule — a law
  8. perch — the fish
  9. club — for dancing
  10. swing — music
  11. swing — to play on
  12. vault — a safe
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. club — for golf
  15. court — of a king
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. vault — an arched ceiling

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