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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: field · nail · capital · vault · pop · bark · swing · staff

  1. David sat on the ________________.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. staff — employees
  3. bark — to shout
  4. field — for sport
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. staff — a stick
  8. capital — a city
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. pop — music
  12. field — a subject
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. pop — to visit
  15. vault — a safe
  16. swing — music
  17. swing — in golf
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. pop — soda
  20. field — farmland
  21. capital — money
  22. nail — on a finger
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. staff — employees

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