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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 116 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: stem · fan · capital · mouse · pass · stock · pitch · degree

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. degree — from a university
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. stem — to come from
  6. stock — goods
  7. pitch — completely
  8. degree — an amount
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. degree — temperature
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. capital — a city
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. pass — a permit
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. pass — to succeed
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. stock — shares
  24. pass — to spend time

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