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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: stem · land · vault · bowl · cell · mine · squash · deal

  1. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  6. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. stem — to come from
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. vault — in gymnastics
  6. bowl — to roll
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. land — to come down
  9. squash — to crush
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. squash — the sport
  13. cell — a phone
  14. cell — in biology
  15. vault — a safe
  16. vault — an arched ceiling
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. land — a country
  22. deal — to handle
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. mine — for digging

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