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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: chest · net · toast · date · pitcher · rule · swing · stem

  1. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. chest — of your body
  4. stem — to come from
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. toast — a drink to someone
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. toast — bread
  9. swing — to play on
  10. net — in sport
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. net — after costs
  13. net — for catching
  14. swing — in golf
  15. chest — a box
  16. rule — a law
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. toast — the most admired
  20. swing — music
  21. chest — of your body
  22. rule — government
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. date — the fruit

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