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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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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 · pitcher · firm · row · pitch · spring · deal · bark

  1. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  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. deal — an agreement
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. vault — a safe
  4. spring — the season
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. firm — a company
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. bark — to shout
  11. row — to paddle
  12. firm — steady
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. firm — decided
  15. spring — a coil
  16. vault — an arched ceiling
  17. row — a line
  18. deal — to handle
  19. spring — of water
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. pitcher — a jug
  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