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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 120 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: lash · vault · staff · pitch · mark · clip · cue · last

  1. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  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. cue — a signal
  2. staff — employees
  3. staff — employees
  4. clip — to cut
  5. last — finally
  6. vault — a safe
  7. last — final
  8. cue — for pool
  9. last — to go on
  10. clip — for paper
  11. staff — a stick
  12. mark — to pay attention
  13. cue — a hint
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. mark — a trace
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. clip — a video
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. mark — a grade
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. pitch — completely
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  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