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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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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: trunk · wave · ground · ball · racket · vault · degree · last

  1. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. degree — an amount
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. degree — from a university
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. ball — a great time
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. last — to go on
  14. ground — crushed
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. last — finally
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. ground — a position
  19. last — final
  20. vault — a safe
  21. degree — temperature
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. ball — a dance
  24. vault — in gymnastics

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