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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. When will it ________________ you to start?
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. band — a music group
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. squash — the sport
  5. suit — clothes
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. capital — a city
  10. pitch — completely
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. suit — to fit
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. squash — to crush
  15. row — to paddle
  16. suit — in cards
  17. capital — money
  18. stem — to come from
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. row — a line
  23. band — a ring
  24. squash — the vegetable

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