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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: band · vault · bank · key · cap · net · degree · row

  1. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. key — for a lock
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. row — a line
  7. band — a music group
  8. bank — of a river
  9. row — to paddle
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. net — after costs
  12. net — in sport
  13. net — for catching
  14. band — a ring
  15. degree — from a university
  16. cap — a hat
  17. cap — a lid
  18. key — the most important part
  19. degree — temperature
  20. bank — for money
  21. degree — an amount
  22. key — in music
  23. bank — for money
  24. cap — of ice

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