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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: hand · straw · capital · vault · toast · suit · degree · club

  1. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. When will it ________________ you to start?
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  24. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. suit — clothes
  3. degree — from a university
  4. club — for golf
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. toast — the most admired
  7. vault — a safe
  8. hand — in cards
  9. suit — to fit
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. capital — money
  14. hand — help
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. club — for dancing
  17. degree — temperature
  18. toast — bread
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. degree — an amount
  21. capital — a city
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. suit — in cards
  24. toast — a drink to someone

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