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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: net · bear · pitch · stem · chair · bank · band · pitcher

  1. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  14. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. bear — the animal
  3. stem — to come from
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. band — a ring
  6. bank — for money
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. pitch — completely
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. bear — the animal
  13. bank — of a river
  14. bank — for money
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. net — in sport
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. net — for catching
  23. band — a music group
  24. net — after costs

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