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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 116 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.

Words on the sheet
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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: court · pop · hand · ground · cue · capital · vault · perch

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. ground — a position
  4. capital — money
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. vault — in gymnastics
  7. perch — the fish
  8. court — for sport
  9. capital — a city
  10. hand — help
  11. cue — a signal
  12. vault — a safe
  13. cue — a hint
  14. ground — the earth
  15. cue — for pool
  16. hand — in cards
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. pop — to visit
  19. court — of a king
  20. pop — music
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. court — of law
  23. pop — soda
  24. hand — part of the body

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