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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: vault · pitch · perch · rock · lash · race · file · face

  1. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. face — to confront
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. perch — the fish
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. vault — in gymnastics
  7. race — humankind
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. race — a contest
  11. pitch — completely
  12. face — to point toward
  13. file — a tool
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. rock — music
  16. race — the arms race
  17. face — part of the head
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. rock — a stone
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. vault — a safe
  22. file — a line of people
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. file — a document

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