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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: degree · spring · pitch · sharp · perch · chest · charge · vault

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. vault — an arched ceiling
  3. chest — of your body
  4. vault — a safe
  5. spring — a coil
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. spring — the season
  8. chest — a box
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. charge — a price
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. spring — of water
  15. charge — electricity
  16. chest — of your body
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. charge — in control
  19. sharp — clever
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. pitch — completely
  22. perch — the fish
  23. degree — temperature
  24. degree — from a university

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