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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  4. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. branch — a division
  3. vault — in gymnastics
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. capital — a city
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. capital — money
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. spring — a coil
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. track — a path
  16. spring — the season
  17. track — a song
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. vault — a safe
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. spring — of water
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. track — to keep track

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