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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: straw · vault · board · toast · ground · track · branch · capital

  1. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  24. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. track — a path
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. toast — bread
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. track — a song
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. capital — money
  10. ground — crushed
  11. vault — a safe
  12. branch — a division
  13. ground — a position
  14. board — to get on
  15. ground — the earth
  16. capital — a city
  17. toast — the most admired
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. board — a committee
  23. board — a flat piece
  24. toast — a drink to someone

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