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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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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: vault · cold · fall · trunk · sharp · board

  1. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. vault — a safe
  3. fall — the season
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. cold — an illness
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. vault — an arched ceiling
  8. sharp — clever
  9. cold — not warm
  10. fall — to drop
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. board — a committee
  13. board — to get on
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. fall — to drop
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. sharp — exactly

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