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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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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 · mouse · trunk · cell · vault · ground · bat · rule

  1. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  3. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. mouse — for a computer
  4. bat — the animal
  5. ground — the earth
  6. rule — government
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. vault — in gymnastics
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. cell — in biology
  12. ground — a position
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. ground — crushed
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. vault — a safe
  21. cell — a phone
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. bowl — a football final

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