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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.

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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: hand · chip · firm · pitch · vault · kid · present · cell

  1. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  5. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. present — there
  3. hand — help
  4. pitch — completely
  5. firm — a company
  6. present — the time now
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. vault — a safe
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. chip — to eat
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. vault — an arched ceiling
  17. chip — for betting
  18. firm — decided
  19. kid — to tease
  20. cell — in biology
  21. hand — in cards
  22. firm — steady
  23. cell — a phone
  24. kid — child

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