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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. object — a thing
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. object — to protest
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. cap — a lid
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. file — a line of people
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. stem — to come from
  14. file — a document
  15. cap — a hat
  16. kid — child
  17. net — after costs
  18. net — for catching
  19. pitch — completely
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. file — a tool
  22. object — an aim
  23. net — in sport
  24. cap — of ice

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