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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 116 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: ruler · vault · net · race · bark · stock · capital · prune

  1. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  9. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. stock — goods
  6. net — for catching
  7. race — a contest
  8. ruler — a monarch
  9. vault — in gymnastics
  10. prune — to trim
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. capital — a city
  14. race — the arms race
  15. vault — a safe
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. prune — to trim
  18. race — humankind
  19. capital — money
  20. stock — shares
  21. bark — to shout
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. net — after costs

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