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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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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 · jam · bass · kid · cell · capital · wind · row

  1. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  17. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — in traffic
  2. capital — money
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. wind — moving air
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. cell — in biology
  7. row — a line
  8. kid — to tease
  9. capital — a city
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. bass — low music
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. wind — moving air
  15. row — to paddle
  16. jam — to spread on bread
  17. jam — a tight spot
  18. kid — child
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. vault — a safe
  21. cell — a phone
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. bass — the fish
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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