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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: vault · file · bark · chest · track · mark · race · capital

  1. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. file — a tool
  3. track — to keep track
  4. vault — a safe
  5. mark — a trace
  6. file — a line of people
  7. chest — of your body
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. chest — a box
  10. bark — to shout
  11. race — a contest
  12. capital — money
  13. track — a song
  14. mark — a grade
  15. race — humankind
  16. file — a document
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. chest — of your body
  20. race — the arms race
  21. capital — a city
  22. mark — to pay attention
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. bark — of a tree

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