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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: pit · chest · plane · fall · race · vault · capital · pitcher

  1. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — an arched ceiling
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. capital — a city
  4. fall — the season
  5. race — a contest
  6. race — the arms race
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. race — humankind
  9. pit — a hole
  10. capital — money
  11. fall — to drop
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. fall — to drop
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. chest — of your body
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. vault — a safe
  18. pit — in a race
  19. plane — a tool
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. chest — a box
  23. chest — of your body
  24. plane — an aircraft

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