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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: tear · last · vault · pitcher · capital · bank

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  18. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. last — final
  5. capital — a city
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. vault — a safe
  8. bank — of a river
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. tear — from crying
  11. tear — from crying
  12. bank — for money
  13. tear — to rip
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. capital — money
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. bank — for money
  18. last — to go on

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