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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: craft · degree · cell · vault · ball · bat

  1. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. craft — boats
  3. degree — from a university
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. vault — a safe
  6. cell — a phone
  7. ball — a great time
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. degree — an amount
  10. cell — in biology
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. ball — a dance
  14. craft — a skill
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. bat — the animal
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. craft — a handicraft

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