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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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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: stem · pitcher · land · net · bowl · stick · kid · lean

  1. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. net — after costs
  5. net — in sport
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. lean — to bend
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. land — to come down
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. kid — to tease
  12. lean — thin
  13. stem — to come from
  14. land — a country
  15. net — for catching
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. kid — child
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. land — ground
  22. bowl — a dish
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. stem — of a plant

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