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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 120 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: snap · vault · capital · wind · calf · last

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. last — finally
  4. capital — money
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. last — to go on
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. vault — in gymnastics
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. vault — a safe
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. last — final
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. wind — moving air
  16. snap — to click
  17. capital — a city
  18. calf — of the leg

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