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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: chair · bat · cue · fall · game · vault · pop · march

  1. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. pop — music
  3. vault — in gymnastics
  4. fall — to drop
  5. vault — a safe
  6. cue — a signal
  7. vault — an arched ceiling
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. pop — to visit
  10. march — the month
  11. bat — the animal
  12. march — the month
  13. game — wild animals
  14. march — music
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. cue — a hint
  19. fall — to drop
  20. cue — for pool
  21. pop — soda
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. fall — the season
  24. game — a match

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