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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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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: vault · wake · ball · mark · capital · cabinet · wound · cell

  1. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. capital — money
  3. wound — an injury
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. ball — a great time
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. ball — a dance
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. capital — a city
  11. wound — an injury
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. mark — a trace
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. cell — in biology
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. cell — a phone
  22. wake — a trail
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. mark — a grade

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