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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: pass · mate · net · toast · pitch · hand · content · tear

  1. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. mate — a partner
  3. net — in sport
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. mate — to breed
  6. toast — a drink to someone
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. content — the amount
  9. mate — a friend
  10. hand — in cards
  11. toast — bread
  12. hand — help
  13. net — after costs
  14. tear — from crying
  15. pass — to succeed
  16. tear — to rip
  17. content — happy
  18. toast — the most admired
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. net — for catching
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. pass — a permit
  24. tear — from crying

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