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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: vault · pitcher · firm · spring · mark · cell · field · last

  1. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  20. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. field — a subject
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. firm — a company
  6. spring — a coil
  7. spring — of water
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. mark — a trace
  10. mark — a grade
  11. cell — a phone
  12. field — for sport
  13. spring — the season
  14. last — finally
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. last — to go on
  18. field — farmland
  19. vault — a safe
  20. firm — decided
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. last — final
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. cell — in biology

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