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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 · bass · date · rash · court · vault · toast · bear

  1. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. toast — the most admired
  3. bear — the animal
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. bass — low music
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. court — for sport
  10. vault — a safe
  11. bear — the animal
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. date — the fruit
  14. rash — a series
  15. court — of a king
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. toast — a drink to someone
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. kick — in football
  21. toast — bread
  22. court — of law
  23. bass — the fish
  24. rash — hasty

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