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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: cap · can · bear · shower · land · board · net · pitch

  1. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. can — a tin
  4. cap — a lid
  5. cap — a hat
  6. cap — of ice
  7. bear — the animal
  8. land — a country
  9. land — ground
  10. land — to come down
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. shower — to wash
  13. board — a committee
  14. can — to be able to
  15. shower — rain
  16. net — in sport
  17. pitch — completely
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. bear — the animal
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. net — after costs
  23. board — to get on
  24. can — a tin

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