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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: mark · court · current · pit · date · net · rule · vault

  1. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. net — after costs
  3. rule — government
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. current — of water
  8. court — of a king
  9. pit — a hole
  10. court — of law
  11. date — the fruit
  12. court — for sport
  13. current — happening now
  14. current — electric
  15. rule — a law
  16. mark — a trace
  17. pit — in a race
  18. vault — an arched ceiling
  19. net — in sport
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. net — for catching
  23. mark — a grade
  24. vault — a safe

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