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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: hide · vault · capital · mate · bowl · court

  1. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. court — of law
  4. court — for sport
  5. court — of a king
  6. vault — a safe
  7. vault — an arched ceiling
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. vault — in gymnastics
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. mate — a friend
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. capital — money
  15. mate — to breed
  16. capital — a city
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. bowl — to roll

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