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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: patient · vault · trunk · capital · degree · key · branch · racket

  1. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. key — for a lock
  2. key — the most important part
  3. branch — a division
  4. capital — money
  5. capital — a city
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. key — in music
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. vault — a safe
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. degree — an amount
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. degree — temperature
  22. degree — from a university
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. branch — of a bank

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