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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: trunk · vault · kid · mouse · bark · fork · bowl · calf

  1. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. kid — to tease
  5. kid — child
  6. vault — in gymnastics
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. mouse — for a computer
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. fork — in a road
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. vault — a safe
  16. vault — an arched ceiling
  17. bark — to shout
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. calf — of the leg
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. bowl — a football final

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