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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 · fork · vault · snap · club · spell

  1. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. fork — in a road
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. club — for golf
  5. vault — a safe
  6. spell — letters
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. club — for dancing
  10. vault — an arched ceiling
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. court — of law
  13. spell — a short time
  14. club — a group
  15. court — of a king
  16. court — for sport
  17. spell — magic
  18. snap — to snap out of it

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