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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: temple · capital · bat · last · stem · vault · racket · key

  1. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. When was this ________________ built?
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. capital — money
  3. key — for a lock
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. capital — a city
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. last — to go on
  9. stem — to come from
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. key — the most important part
  17. key — in music
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. vault — a safe
  20. last — finally
  21. bat — the animal
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. last — final
  24. temple — side of the head

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