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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: stem · pitch · pound · cap · shower · cold

  1. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. shower — to wash
  3. cap — of ice
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. pitch — completely
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. cold — an illness
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. cold — not warm
  12. cap — a hat
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. stem — to come from
  15. cap — a lid
  16. pound — a weight
  17. shower — rain
  18. shower — a meteor shower

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