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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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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: cap · pitch · pitcher · stem · straw · spell

  1. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. stem — to come from
  3. cap — of ice
  4. cap — a hat
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. spell — a short time
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. spell — letters
  12. pitch — completely
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. cap — a lid
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. pitch — a sports field

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