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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 120 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: tube · prune · vault · degree · capital · cabinet · net · cell

  1. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. capital — money
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. tube — the underground
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. cell — in biology
  9. degree — from a university
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. net — for catching
  13. vault — in gymnastics
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. prune — to trim
  16. capital — a city
  17. prune — to trim
  18. degree — temperature
  19. degree — an amount
  20. net — in sport
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. net — after costs
  23. tube — a container
  24. cell — a phone

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