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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 116 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 · vault · tube · pop · sharp · cell · bulb · drill

  1. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. The light ________________ burned out.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. pop — music
  3. bulb — for light
  4. drill — army training
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. pop — to visit
  11. drill — the tool
  12. capital — a city
  13. sharp — clever
  14. cell — in biology
  15. tube — a container
  16. capital — money
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. cell — a phone
  19. pop — soda
  20. vault — a safe
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. bulb — for light
  23. tube — the underground
  24. drill — a practice

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