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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.

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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: chip · tear · land · vault · straw · pitcher · bound · key

  1. He is an ace ________________.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. land — to come down
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. key — for a lock
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. bound — certain
  7. land — ground
  8. vault — a safe
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. bound — obliged
  11. bound — tied together
  12. chip — to eat
  13. land — a country
  14. tear — from crying
  15. tear — to rip
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. key — in music
  18. tear — from crying
  19. key — the most important part
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. chip — for betting

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