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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 116 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 · wound · saw · racket · hand · pitch · kid · perch

  1. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. pitch — completely
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. hand — in cards
  7. kid — to tease
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. saw — the tool
  12. kid — child
  13. wound — an injury
  14. perch — the fish
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. wound — an injury
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. hand — help
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. saw — the tool
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. racket — a loud noise

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