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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.

Make a worksheet

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: vault · clip · content · fan · net · bay · file · pitcher

  1. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  6. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. My mare is ________________ in color.
  21. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. vault — a safe
  3. content — happy
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. vault — in gymnastics
  6. bay — to keep at bay
  7. clip — a video
  8. net — in sport
  9. net — for catching
  10. clip — to cut
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. content — the amount
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. net — after costs
  15. file — a tool
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. file — a line of people
  19. clip — for paper
  20. bay — a horse colour
  21. bay — a part of the sea
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. file — a document
  24. fan — a supporter

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