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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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Word bank
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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: kick · vault · court · bound · file · chip · track · lash

  1. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. court — for sport
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. chip — for betting
  5. court — of law
  6. bound — certain
  7. track — a path
  8. court — of a king
  9. track — a song
  10. file — a document
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. track — to keep track
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. vault — a safe
  17. file — a line of people
  18. bound — obliged
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. chip — to eat
  21. kick — in football
  22. bound — tied together
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. kick — with a leg

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