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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 · leaves · rule · chest · bowl · race · degree · vault

  1. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  10. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. vault — an arched ceiling
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. chest — a box
  4. degree — an amount
  5. chest — of your body
  6. race — the arms race
  7. race — humankind
  8. degree — temperature
  9. bowl — a dish
  10. vault — a safe
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. rule — a law
  13. pitch — completely
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. race — a contest
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. degree — from a university
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. chest — of your body
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. rule — government

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