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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: vault · game · bulb · spring · mine · row · capital · ball

  1. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. The light ________________ burned out.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. I've got to change the light ________________.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — an arched ceiling
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. row — to paddle
  4. bulb — for light
  5. row — a line
  6. vault — a safe
  7. spring — a coil
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. bulb — for light
  10. ball — a great time
  11. capital — a city
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. spring — of water
  14. capital — money
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. ball — a dance
  17. game — wild animals
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. game — a match
  20. spring — the season
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. mine — for digging
  24. mine — an explosive

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