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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: court · kid · mouse · sharp · march · foot · vault · bore

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  8. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  9. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. vault — in gymnastics
  3. kid — to tease
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. vault — a safe
  6. court — of law
  7. foot — the bottom
  8. foot — a measure
  9. mouse — for a computer
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. bore — to tire
  14. court — of a king
  15. march — music
  16. march — the month
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. march — the month
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. sharp — clever
  23. court — for sport
  24. bore — to drill

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