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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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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 · bass · field · shower · spring · bowl · spell · vault

  1. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. spell — a short time
  3. field — a subject
  4. court — of a king
  5. spring — a coil
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. shower — rain
  8. spell — magic
  9. vault — in gymnastics
  10. spring — the season
  11. shower — to wash
  12. bass — low music
  13. bass — the fish
  14. field — for sport
  15. court — for sport
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. vault — a safe
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. court — of law
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. spell — letters
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. field — farmland

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