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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 120 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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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: rock · cap · net · degree · bulb · vault · pitch · last

  1. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. last — finally
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. rock — a stone
  5. cap — a lid
  6. degree — an amount
  7. rock — music
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. bulb — for light
  10. last — to go on
  11. last — final
  12. degree — temperature
  13. cap — of ice
  14. net — in sport
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. cap — a hat
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. net — for catching
  19. degree — from a university
  20. bulb — for light
  21. bulb — of a plant
  22. pitch — completely
  23. vault — a safe
  24. net — after costs

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