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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: cap · chest · cell · court · wax · wake · bowl · vault

  1. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — in gymnastics
  2. cap — a hat
  3. cap — of ice
  4. wake — a trail
  5. chest — of your body
  6. court — of law
  7. cell — a phone
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. cell — in biology
  10. court — of a king
  11. chest — a box
  12. vault — a safe
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. chest — of your body
  18. cap — a lid
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. wax — to grow
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. court — for sport
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. wax — for sculpting

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