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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: capital · board · mate · mine · content · vault · wind · calf

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. capital — money
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. vault — a safe
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. mate — a partner
  7. capital — a city
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. content — the amount
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. board — a committee
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. mate — a friend
  14. content — happy
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. wind — moving air
  17. wind — moving air
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. board — to get on
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. mate — to breed
  24. capital — a big letter

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