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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: vault · coach · season · fine · racket · bay · key · present

  1. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. My mare is ________________ in color.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. fine — all right
  3. season — of the year
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. fine — a penalty
  7. present — there
  8. fine — high quality
  9. vault — a safe
  10. bay — a part of the sea
  11. key — for a lock
  12. bay — to keep at bay
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. bay — a horse colour
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. key — the most important part
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. key — in music
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. present — the time now
  24. season — in sport

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