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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: hand · season · net · vault · last · leaves · racket · fork

  1. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. vault — an arched ceiling
  3. net — for catching
  4. last — finally
  5. last — to go on
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. hand — in cards
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. hand — help
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. season — in sport
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. season — of the year
  19. fork — in a road
  20. last — final
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. net — after costs
  23. vault — a safe
  24. net — 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