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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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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: vault · kick · nail · bark · capital · kid

  1. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. vault — a safe
  4. bark — to shout
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. kid — to tease
  8. capital — money
  9. vault — in gymnastics
  10. capital — a city
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. kid — child
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. kick — in football

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