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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: land · court · drill · fine · pit · chest · firm · vault

  1. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. fine — high quality
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. pit — in a race
  6. chest — of your body
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. drill — the tool
  9. chest — of your body
  10. firm — steady
  11. land — to come down
  12. vault — a safe
  13. court — of a king
  14. land — a country
  15. firm — decided
  16. fine — all right
  17. firm — a company
  18. drill — a practice
  19. court — for sport
  20. chest — a box
  21. land — ground
  22. pit — a hole
  23. court — of law
  24. vault — in gymnastics

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