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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: trunk · jam · snap · racket · vault · coach · bulb · capital

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  11. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. capital — money
  3. bulb — of a plant
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. jam — a tight spot
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. vault — a safe
  10. jam — in traffic
  11. jam — to spread on bread
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. bulb — for light
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. bulb — for light
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. snap — to click

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