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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 · leaves · coach · bat · rash · club · vault · fan

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. rash — hasty
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. rash — a series
  7. court — of a king
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. court — for sport
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. vault — a safe
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. club — a group
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. club — for golf
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. court — of law
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. club — for dancing

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