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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: capital · mine · leaves · branch · vault · land · ruler · bear

  1. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. mine — for digging
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. land — to come down
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. bear — the animal
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. branch — a division
  12. capital — money
  13. bear — the animal
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. land — a country
  16. capital — a city
  17. ruler — a monarch
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. land — ground

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