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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: cold · pitch · fork · mug · firm · club · vault · hide

  1. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. club — for golf
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. firm — a company
  5. fork — in a road
  6. cold — an illness
  7. firm — decided
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. club — for dancing
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. mug — a face
  12. vault — a safe
  13. club — a group
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. mug — a cup
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. mug — to rob
  19. firm — steady
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. cold — not warm
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. pitch — completely

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