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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 116 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: bark · pitcher · capital · mate · vault · leaves · club · squash

  1. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. squash — the sport
  3. vault — a safe
  4. capital — a city
  5. vault — in gymnastics
  6. club — a group
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. club — for dancing
  11. leaves — of a tree
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. club — for golf
  15. bark — to shout
  16. squash — to crush
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. capital — money
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. mate — to breed
  24. mate — a friend

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