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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 120 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: ball · game · vault · fan · scale · cell · ground · trunk

  1. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. ball — a great time
  3. scale — size or range
  4. game — a match
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. ball — a dance
  7. ground — crushed
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. vault — a safe
  11. cell — a phone
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. scale — in music
  15. game — wild animals
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. ground — the earth
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. ground — a position
  23. cell — in biology
  24. trunk — of a car

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