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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: vault · file · cell · wound · capital · date

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. cell — in biology
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. vault — a safe
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. file — a line of people
  8. file — a document
  9. wound — an injury
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. file — a tool
  12. date — the fruit
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. cell — a phone
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. wound — an injury
  17. capital — a city
  18. date — on the calendar

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