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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: pitch · vault · degree · pitcher · press · swing

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. 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. degree — an amount
  2. degree — temperature
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. swing — to play on
  5. degree — from a university
  6. press — a publisher
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. press — newspapers
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. swing — in golf
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. swing — music
  16. press — to push
  17. vault — a safe
  18. 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