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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: content · ruler · bark · current · capital · shower · vault · chair

  1. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. content — happy
  3. current — electric
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. shower — rain
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. chair — a leader
  9. vault — a safe
  10. vault — an arched ceiling
  11. content — the amount
  12. capital — money
  13. current — happening now
  14. capital — a city
  15. current — of water
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. bark — to shout
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. ruler — a monarch
  24. shower — to wash

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