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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: row · toast · hand · plane · wind · cabinet · stem · pitch

  1. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  20. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. toast — the most admired
  4. plane — a tool
  5. hand — in cards
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. row — a line
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. row — to paddle
  12. stem — to come from
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. hand — help
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. wind — moving air
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. toast — a drink to someone
  20. toast — bread
  21. wind — moving air
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. pitch — completely
  24. plane — in geometry

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