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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: rest · bat · trunk · patient · scale · court · vault · roll

  1. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  16. We're on a ________________ here.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a list
  2. court — for sport
  3. court — of a king
  4. court — of law
  5. vault — in gymnastics
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. vault — a safe
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. rest — a break
  11. bat — the animal
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. roll — a cake
  16. roll — on a roll
  17. scale — in music
  18. rest — what's left
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. rest — what's left
  23. scale — size or range
  24. bat — for baseball

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