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

Word bank: mark · vault · present · club · capital · bark

  1. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. present — a gift
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. capital — money
  5. mark — a trace
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. vault — a safe
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. bark — to shout
  11. club — for golf
  12. club — for dancing
  13. present — there
  14. mark — a grade
  15. club — a group
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. capital — a city

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