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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: cell · pop · pitch · cabinet · stem · bass · net · wound

  1. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  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. cell — a phone
  2. pop — soda
  3. bass — low music
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. stem — to come from
  6. bass — the fish
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. pitch — completely
  13. net — after costs
  14. net — for catching
  15. cell — in biology
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. net — in sport
  19. wound — an injury
  20. wound — an injury
  21. pop — to visit
  22. pop — music
  23. stem — a stem cell
  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