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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: suit · saw · date · shower · spring · season · pitch · net

  1. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. When will it ________________ you to start?
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. spring — the season
  5. spring — a coil
  6. date — the fruit
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. net — after costs
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. season — of the year
  11. suit — to fit
  12. season — in sport
  13. net — for catching
  14. suit — in cards
  15. spring — of water
  16. saw — the tool
  17. saw — the tool
  18. suit — clothes
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. shower — to wash
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. shower — rain
  24. net — in sport

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