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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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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: land · pass · band · vault · capital · tear

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  15. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. tear — from crying
  3. land — to come down
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. capital — a city
  8. band — a ring
  9. vault — a safe
  10. pass — a permit
  11. land — ground
  12. tear — to rip
  13. band — a music group
  14. pass — to spend time
  15. pass — to succeed
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. tear — from crying
  18. land — a country

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