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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: pitch · stock · scale · court · mine · swing · cabinet · vault

  1. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. court — for sport
  5. mine — for digging
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. swing — to play on
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. stock — shares
  10. vault — a safe
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. swing — in golf
  13. swing — music
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. scale — size or range
  17. scale — in music
  18. court — of a king
  19. pitch — completely
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. stock — goods
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. court — of law

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