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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 · track · tear · staff · chip · cold · pit · pitch

  1. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. tear — from crying
  3. track — to keep track
  4. pit — a hole
  5. staff — a stick
  6. pit — in a race
  7. vault — a safe
  8. staff — employees
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. chip — for betting
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. tear — from crying
  13. cold — an illness
  14. pitch — completely
  15. staff — employees
  16. track — a path
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. chip — to eat
  21. cold — not warm
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. track — a song
  24. vault — an arched ceiling

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