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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: suit · net · squash · stem · fork · land · pass · capital

  1. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  6. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. When will it ________________ you to start?
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  17. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. net — for catching
  3. capital — a city
  4. net — after costs
  5. pass — to succeed
  6. pass — a permit
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. suit — to fit
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. squash — to crush
  11. land — a country
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. capital — money
  15. squash — the sport
  16. suit — in cards
  17. suit — clothes
  18. land — ground
  19. fork — in a road
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. stem — to come from
  22. net — in sport
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. land — to come down

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