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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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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: suit · tear · vault · stand · field · pitcher · net · deal

  1. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  18. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  19. When will it ________________ you to start?
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  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 — for catching
  2. tear — from crying
  3. tear — from crying
  4. field — for sport
  5. field — farmland
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. stand — to bear
  8. vault — a safe
  9. net — in sport
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. field — a subject
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. stand — for spectators
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. tear — to rip
  16. deal — to handle
  17. suit — clothes
  18. suit — in cards
  19. suit — to fit
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  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