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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: pitcher · wake · leaves · row · saw · march · firm · vault

  1. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. march — music
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. firm — steady
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. firm — decided
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. march — the month
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. wake — a trail
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. march — the month
  16. row — a line
  17. row — to paddle
  18. saw — the tool
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. firm — a company
  21. saw — the tool
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. vault — a safe

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