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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: vault · drill · capital · pitch · bark · present

  1. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. present — a gift
  4. pitch — completely
  5. vault — a safe
  6. present — the time now
  7. present — there
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. bark — to shout
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. drill — a practice
  14. capital — a city
  15. drill — army training
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. capital — money

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