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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: rest · court · hand · vault · scale · current · track · bore

  1. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. hand — help
  3. bore — to tire
  4. court — of a king
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. current — of water
  7. court — of law
  8. scale — size or range
  9. scale — in music
  10. court — for sport
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. rest — what's left
  13. rest — a break
  14. vault — a safe
  15. rest — what's left
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. current — electric
  18. hand — in cards
  19. track — to keep track
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. current — happening now
  22. bore — to drill
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. track — a path

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