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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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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 · trunk · degree · cold · vault · hide

  1. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — an arched ceiling
  2. degree — from a university
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. present — the time now
  7. vault — a safe
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. cold — not warm
  10. cold — an illness
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. degree — temperature
  13. vault — in gymnastics
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. present — a gift
  16. degree — an amount
  17. present — there
  18. trunk — of an elephant

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