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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 120 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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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 · court · race · stem · mine · spring · ball · vault

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. vault — in gymnastics
  3. kick — in football
  4. race — the arms race
  5. race — a contest
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. stem — to come from
  8. spring — of water
  9. vault — a safe
  10. ball — a dance
  11. court — of a king
  12. ball — a great time
  13. race — humankind
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. court — of law
  18. mine — for digging
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. spring — a coil
  23. spring — the season
  24. vault — an arched ceiling

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