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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 116 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: current · pitcher · rush · cold · kid · bulb · court · vault

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. I've got to change the light ________________.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  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. kid — child
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. rush — hurry
  4. kid — to tease
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. bulb — for light
  8. current — happening now
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. court — of a king
  11. cold — an illness
  12. current — electric
  13. current — of water
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. vault — a safe
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. cold — not warm
  18. court — for sport
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. bulb — for light
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  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