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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: jam · wound · rule · bound · vault · pitch · last · stock

  1. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  2. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — to rule out
  2. jam — to spread on bread
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. rule — a law
  5. vault — a safe
  6. rule — government
  7. stock — goods
  8. wound — an injury
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. last — final
  11. last — finally
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. wound — an injury
  14. stock — shares
  15. jam — in traffic
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. last — to go on
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. jam — a tight spot
  20. bound — certain
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. pitch — completely
  23. bound — obliged
  24. bound — tied together

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