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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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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: tear · spring · pound · vault · scale · net · hand · pitch

  1. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — in gymnastics
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. tear — to rip
  4. spring — a coil
  5. scale — size or range
  6. vault — a safe
  7. hand — help
  8. net — after costs
  9. pitch — completely
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. spring — the season
  12. hand — in cards
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. tear — from crying
  15. net — for catching
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. net — in sport
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. spring — of water
  20. scale — in music
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. tear — from crying
  24. pound — a weight

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