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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: pitch · chest · rest · leaves · stick · degree · scale · shower

  1. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. scale — in music
  5. degree — from a university
  6. rest — what's left
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. chest — a box
  10. pitch — completely
  11. chest — of your body
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. scale — size or range
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. shower — rain
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. degree — an amount
  19. shower — to wash
  20. rest — what's left
  21. rest — a break
  22. chest — of your body
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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