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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: cabinet · pound · season · hand · band · vault · saw · capital

  1. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. vault — in gymnastics
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. capital — a city
  7. season — of the year
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. hand — help
  10. vault — a safe
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. capital — money
  13. saw — the tool
  14. pound — a weight
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. band — a ring
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. saw — the tool
  20. season — in sport
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. band — a music group
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. hand — in cards

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