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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 120 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: cold · cap · vault · firm · file · bark · rush · capital

  1. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. vault — an arched ceiling
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. file — a document
  7. capital — money
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. capital — a city
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. firm — a company
  12. cap — a lid
  13. file — a line of people
  14. cold — not warm
  15. file — a tool
  16. firm — decided
  17. cold — an illness
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. cap — a hat
  20. cap — of ice
  21. bark — to shout
  22. rush — hurry
  23. vault — a safe
  24. rush — a thrill

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