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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: plane · file · deal · band · cap · pitch · foot · net

  1. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. file — a document
  3. net — in sport
  4. net — after costs
  5. pitch — completely
  6. foot — the bottom
  7. cap — of ice
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. band — a music group
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. net — for catching
  14. cap — a hat
  15. file — a line of people
  16. file — a tool
  17. deal — to handle
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. foot — a measure
  23. band — a ring
  24. plane — a tool

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