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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 · march · present · lie · mark · straw · pitch · last

  1. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. last — final
  3. vault — in gymnastics
  4. present — the time now
  5. present — a gift
  6. last — to go on
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. mark — a grade
  12. pitch — completely
  13. last — finally
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. vault — a safe
  16. lie — to recline
  17. march — music
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. march — the month
  22. march — the month
  23. mark — a trace
  24. pitch — a sports field

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