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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: sharp · cabinet · temple · vault · capital · clip · root · spring

  1. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. When was this ________________ built?
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. clip — a video
  3. root — of a word
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. vault — a safe
  7. capital — a city
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. clip — to cut
  10. sharp — clever
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. clip — for paper
  13. capital — money
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. spring — of water
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. root — the cause
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. spring — the season
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. root — of a plant

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