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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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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: charge · vault · stock · court · fine · pop · date · bat

  1. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. The tickets are free of ________________.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. fine — all right
  3. court — of law
  4. court — for sport
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. bat — the animal
  8. date — the fruit
  9. stock — shares
  10. pop — soda
  11. charge — a price
  12. fine — high quality
  13. charge — in control
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. pop — music
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. vault — a safe
  18. pop — to visit
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. court — of a king
  24. stock — goods

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