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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: capital · mine · rash · toast · fall · calf · wind · vault

  1. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  24. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. vault — in gymnastics
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. rash — a series
  6. mine — for digging
  7. fall — the season
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. capital — a city
  11. vault — a safe
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. capital — money
  14. toast — a drink to someone
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. wind — moving air
  17. fall — to drop
  18. wind — moving air
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. toast — the most admired
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. fall — to drop
  24. toast — bread

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