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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 · game · pitcher · content · racket · kid · net · arm

  1. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. My father caught me by the ________________.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. vault — in gymnastics
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. net — for catching
  5. content — happy
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. vault — a safe
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. net — after costs
  11. net — in sport
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. kid — child
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. kid — to tease
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. game — wild animals
  21. content — the amount
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. game — a match
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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