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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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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: pit · vault · straw · kid · capital · pitch

  1. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  2. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — in gymnastics
  2. pit — in a race
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. pit — a hole
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. capital — money
  8. capital — a city
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. pitch — completely
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. vault — a safe
  16. kid — child
  17. kid — to tease
  18. straw — a straw man

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