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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 116 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: lash · safe · vault · cell · branch · cold · capital · current

  1. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — a strongbox
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. cold — an illness
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. cell — a phone
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. current — happening now
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. cold — not warm
  16. vault — a safe
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. current — electric
  19. current — of water
  20. branch — a division
  21. capital — money
  22. cell — in biology
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. capital — a city

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