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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 120 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: fall · drill · cap · straw · trunk · vault · game · rash

  1. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. game — a match
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. cap — of ice
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. cap — a lid
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. drill — a practice
  11. rash — hasty
  12. fall — to drop
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. fall — the season
  18. cap — a hat
  19. vault — a safe
  20. drill — the tool
  21. fall — to drop
  22. rash — a series
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. drill — army training

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