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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: chest · bowl · lean · pitch · hide · vault

  1. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. chest — of your body
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. chest — of your body
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. vault — a safe
  7. chest — a box
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. vault — in gymnastics
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. pitch — completely
  17. lean — to bend
  18. lean — thin

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