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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: mine · file · swing · bay · tube · stem · ground · pitch

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. My mare is ________________ in color.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. file — a tool
  5. ground — the earth
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. swing — music
  9. stem — to come from
  10. ground — crushed
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. tube — a container
  13. bay — to keep at bay
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. tube — the underground
  16. bay — a horse colour
  17. swing — in golf
  18. swing — to play on
  19. ground — a position
  20. file — a document
  21. file — a line of people
  22. pitch — completely
  23. bay — a part of the sea
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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