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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 · cold · pitcher · leaves · court · season · pass · suit

  1. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. When will it ________________ you to start?
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  19. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  20. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. suit — to fit
  3. stem — to come from
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. cold — not warm
  10. court — for sport
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. court — of law
  15. court — of a king
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. cold — an illness
  18. pass — a permit
  19. suit — in cards
  20. suit — clothes
  21. season — in sport
  22. season — of the year
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. pass — to spend time

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