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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: game · patient · bear · pitch · bass · kick · vault · file

  1. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. bear — the animal
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. vault — in gymnastics
  6. vault — a safe
  7. game — wild animals
  8. bass — the fish
  9. file — a tool
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. pitch — completely
  12. game — a match
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. bass — low music
  19. bear — the animal
  20. file — a document
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. kick — in football
  23. file — a line of people
  24. vault — an arched ceiling

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