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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: sharp · wind · stem · rock · fall · pitch · tube · land

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. wind — moving air
  3. fall — to drop
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. rock — to move gently
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. tube — the underground
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. stem — to come from
  12. land — ground
  13. pitch — completely
  14. land — to come down
  15. sharp — clever
  16. tube — a container
  17. fall — the season
  18. rock — music
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. fall — to drop
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. land — a country
  24. rock — a stone

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