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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: bat · rest · capital · dip · arm · saw · march · vault

  1. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. capital — money
  3. dip — to sink
  4. rest — what's left
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. march — music
  9. capital — a city
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. march — the month
  13. rest — what's left
  14. march — the month
  15. saw — the tool
  16. arm — a part of something
  17. bat — the animal
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. vault — a safe
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. saw — the tool
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. rest — a break

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