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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 116 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: ball · pitch · deal · vault · mine · mate · content · squash

  1. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. mate — a partner
  3. ball — a dance
  4. ball — a great time
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. vault — a safe
  7. deal — to handle
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. squash — to crush
  10. mate — a friend
  11. content — the amount
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. content — happy
  14. mate — to breed
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. mine — for digging
  17. squash — the sport
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. pitch — completely
  24. deal — an agreement

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