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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: wind · vault · wake · date · capital · stick · key · arm

  1. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  4. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. vault — a safe
  4. arm — a part of something
  5. wind — moving air
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. wake — a trail
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. key — the most important part
  10. capital — money
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. key — for a lock
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. capital — a city
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. wind — moving air
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. date — the fruit
  23. key — in music
  24. vault — an arched ceiling

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