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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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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: pitch · trunk · prune · plane · cap · bay · cold · net

  1. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. My mare is ________________ in color.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. pitch — completely
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. prune — to trim
  5. cap — of ice
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. prune — to trim
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. plane — a tool
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. cap — a hat
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. cold — not warm
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. cold — an illness
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. bay — a horse colour
  21. net — after costs
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. net — for catching
  24. cap — a lid

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