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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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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: mate · vault · pitch · craft · mine · degree · prune · fall

  1. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. mate — a friend
  3. mine — for digging
  4. vault — a safe
  5. prune — to trim
  6. mate — a partner
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. fall — to drop
  9. craft — boats
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. fall — to drop
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. degree — from a university
  14. prune — to trim
  15. pitch — completely
  16. vault — an arched ceiling
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. degree — temperature
  20. fall — the season
  21. mate — to breed
  22. degree — an amount
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. craft — a skill

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