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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: vault · cap · field · stand · row · cell · degree · stick

  1. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. I can't ________________ this cold.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. stand — on your feet
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. row — a line
  5. field — farmland
  6. stand — to bear
  7. cap — of ice
  8. degree — temperature
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. stand — for spectators
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. cap — a hat
  13. row — to paddle
  14. cap — a lid
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. degree — an amount
  17. field — for sport
  18. cell — in biology
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. vault — a safe
  22. field — a subject
  23. degree — from a university
  24. vault — in gymnastics

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