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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: vault · field · bowl · ball · tube · cell · straw · scale

  1. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — for weighing
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. tube — a container
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. ball — a great time
  8. field — for sport
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. cell — a phone
  12. scale — size or range
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. field — a subject
  15. field — farmland
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. vault — a safe
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. scale — in music
  20. cell — in biology
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. ball — a dance
  23. tube — the underground
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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