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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: kick · degree · fall · ball · bear · vault

  1. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. degree — temperature
  3. kick — in football
  4. degree — from a university
  5. vault — a safe
  6. ball — a dance
  7. degree — an amount
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. bear — the animal
  11. fall — to drop
  12. ball — a great time
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. fall — the season
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. bear — the animal
  18. ball — a round shape

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