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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 · vault · wake · current · jam · bat · stand · pound

  1. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  11. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. Tom got himself in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. vault — in gymnastics
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. current — happening now
  7. capital — a city
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. bat — the animal
  10. stand — for spectators
  11. jam — to spread on bread
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. jam — in traffic
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. capital — money
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. current — electric
  18. stand — to bear
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. wake — a trail
  21. pound — a weight
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. current — of water
  24. jam — a tight spot

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