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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: wake · arm · plane · rash · vault · court · land · capital

  1. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — a part of something
  2. land — to come down
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. rash — a series
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. court — for sport
  7. court — of law
  8. plane — a tool
  9. capital — money
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. court — of a king
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. wake — a trail
  17. rash — hasty
  18. land — ground
  19. land — a country
  20. vault — a safe
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. capital — a city
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. plane — in geometry

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