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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: chip · fall · last · net · race · pit · vault · pitch

  1. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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. pit — in a race
  4. net — for catching
  5. fall — to drop
  6. last — final
  7. last — to go on
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. fall — to drop
  10. net — after costs
  11. race — a contest
  12. race — the arms race
  13. net — in sport
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. fall — the season
  16. pit — a hole
  17. race — humankind
  18. vault — a safe
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. pitch — completely
  22. chip — for betting
  23. chip — to eat
  24. chip — in a computer

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