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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 · pitch · staff · coach · snap · last · spell · mine

  1. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. staff — employees
  4. spell — letters
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. last — final
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. vault — in gymnastics
  10. mine — for digging
  11. staff — a stick
  12. last — finally
  13. pitch — completely
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. spell — magic
  18. snap — to click
  19. vault — a safe
  20. spell — a short time
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. last — to go on

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