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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: pop · vault · straw · cell · rock · bark · capital · plane

  1. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. cell — a phone
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. rock — a stone
  5. capital — money
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. cell — in biology
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. rock — music
  11. plane — a tool
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. vault — in gymnastics
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. vault — a safe
  18. capital — a city
  19. bark — to shout
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. pop — to visit
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. pop — soda
  24. pop — music

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