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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: firm · spring · mate · vault · game · rash · capital · wind

  1. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. game — wild animals
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. spring — a coil
  5. rash — a series
  6. mate — a partner
  7. spring — of water
  8. capital — money
  9. firm — steady
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. wind — moving air
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. spring — the season
  15. firm — decided
  16. capital — a city
  17. game — a match
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. rash — hasty
  20. mate — a friend
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. vault — a safe
  23. firm — a company
  24. wind — moving air

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