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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 120 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: present · pass · vault · kid · foot · branch · court · ground

  1. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. court — of law
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. vault — a safe
  6. branch — a division
  7. court — for sport
  8. court — of a king
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. ground — a position
  11. pass — a permit
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. kid — child
  14. foot — a measure
  15. present — the time now
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. ground — the earth
  20. present — a gift
  21. kid — to tease
  22. ground — crushed
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. vault — an arched ceiling

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