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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 120 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: ground · pitch · wound · capital · straw · mate · stem · bowl

  1. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. ground — the earth
  3. mate — a partner
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. pitch — completely
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. mate — a friend
  9. stem — to come from
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. ground — crushed
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. capital — a city
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. mate — to breed
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. ground — a position
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. capital — money
  21. wound — an injury
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. wound — an injury
  24. straw — dry grass

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