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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: net · pitch · chest · deal · saw · object · degree · ball

  1. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. net — in sport
  3. degree — an amount
  4. chest — of your body
  5. degree — temperature
  6. deal — to handle
  7. object — to protest
  8. net — after costs
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. object — a thing
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. saw — the tool
  13. saw — the tool
  14. ball — a dance
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. ball — a great time
  17. net — for catching
  18. chest — a box
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. chest — of your body
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. pitch — completely
  23. object — an aim
  24. degree — from a university

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