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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: pass · mouse · pitch · last · track · stem · sharp · net

  1. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. last — finally
  3. last — to go on
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. sharp — clever
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. pass — to succeed
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. net — for catching
  11. pass — a permit
  12. net — after costs
  13. track — a path
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. track — to keep track
  16. pitch — completely
  17. track — a song
  18. last — final
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. net — in sport
  24. stem — of a plant

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