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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: vault · plane · straw · court · degree · pop · temple · foot

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. When was this ________________ built?
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. degree — from a university
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. pop — soda
  5. plane — a tool
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. court — of a king
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. pop — music
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. degree — an amount
  16. foot — a measure
  17. court — of law
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. degree — temperature
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. vault — a safe
  24. pop — to visit

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