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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.

Words on the sheet
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Word bank
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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: stem · bark · shower · staff · capital · vault

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  3. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. vault — an arched ceiling
  3. vault — a safe
  4. bark — to shout
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. stem — to come from
  7. capital — money
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. staff — employees
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. staff — employees
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. staff — a stick
  15. capital — a city
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. shower — rain
  18. capital — a big letter

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