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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. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — in gymnastics
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. capital — money
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. wound — an injury
  8. board — to get on
  9. board — a committee
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. spell — letters
  15. spell — a short time
  16. spell — magic
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. band — a ring
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. vault — a safe
  21. branch — a division
  22. capital — a city
  23. wound — an injury
  24. band — a music group

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