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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: lean · court · land · suit · wound · kid · fork · vault

  1. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. When will it ________________ you to start?
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. land — ground
  3. kid — to tease
  4. kid — child
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. suit — to fit
  7. court — for sport
  8. land — a country
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. suit — clothes
  11. wound — an injury
  12. court — of a king
  13. suit — in cards
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. fork — in a road
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. wound — an injury
  18. land — to come down
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. lean — thin
  23. vault — a safe
  24. court — of law

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