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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 116 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 · rule · bulb · bowl · straw · fan · ground · field

  1. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. I've got to change the light ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. bulb — for light
  3. vault — in gymnastics
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. ground — crushed
  6. ground — a position
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. vault — a safe
  11. rule — government
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. field — a subject
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. field — for sport
  18. rule — a law
  19. field — farmland
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. ground — the earth
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. bulb — for light

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