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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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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: season · rest · root · vault · court · deal · roll · file

  1. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. We're on a ________________ here.
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. season — of the year
  3. roll — a cake
  4. rest — a break
  5. roll — a list
  6. rest — what's left
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. court — for sport
  9. season — in sport
  10. court — of law
  11. file — a document
  12. root — of a plant
  13. file — a tool
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. roll — on a roll
  18. deal — an agreement
  19. deal — to handle
  20. file — a line of people
  21. court — of a king
  22. root — of a word
  23. rest — what's left
  24. root — the cause

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