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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: rush · hide · capital · fall · pitch · stem · root · straw

  1. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. capital — money
  4. fall — to drop
  5. fall — to drop
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. root — of a plant
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. root — the cause
  12. capital — a city
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. fall — the season
  16. rush — hurry
  17. stem — to come from
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. root — of a word
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. pitch — completely
  24. rush — a thrill

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