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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: bowl · kid · rule · last · toast · content · trunk · vault

  1. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. vault — in gymnastics
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. last — final
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. vault — a safe
  7. content — the amount
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. bowl — a dish
  10. content — happy
  11. toast — the most admired
  12. kid — child
  13. kid — to tease
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. rule — government
  18. last — finally
  19. toast — a drink to someone
  20. rule — a law
  21. last — to go on
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. toast — bread

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