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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: vault · row · pit · hide · wound · stem · pop · net

  1. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. pit — in a race
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. row — a line
  5. pop — soda
  6. net — after costs
  7. net — in sport
  8. wound — an injury
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. pop — music
  11. wound — an injury
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. pit — a hole
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. vault — a safe
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. stem — to come from
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. net — for catching
  20. row — to paddle
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. hide — animal skin

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