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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: cold · bowl · tube · cell · stem · object · vault · hide

  1. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. cold — not warm
  7. object — to protest
  8. cell — a phone
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. stem — to come from
  11. cold — an illness
  12. object — an aim
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. object — a thing
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. vault — a safe
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. cell — in biology
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. tube — the underground

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