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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: clip · mate · spell · pitch · coach · shower · vault · wake

  1. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. spell — a short time
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. spell — magic
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. pitch — completely
  8. wake — a trail
  9. vault — in gymnastics
  10. clip — to cut
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. clip — for paper
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. clip — a video
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. spell — letters
  18. shower — to wash
  19. mate — a friend
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. shower — rain
  23. mate — to breed
  24. vault — a safe

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