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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: suit · chest · rush · degree · bulb · vault · game · trunk

  1. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  6. When will it ________________ you to start?
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. degree — an amount
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. suit — in cards
  6. suit — to fit
  7. game — a match
  8. rush — hurry
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. chest — a box
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. vault — a safe
  15. chest — of your body
  16. game — wild animals
  17. bulb — for light
  18. degree — from a university
  19. bulb — for light
  20. chest — of your body
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. suit — clothes
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. degree — temperature

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