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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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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: pitch · cold · bear · stem · key · coach · snap · bay

  1. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. My mare is ________________ in color.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. bear — the animal
  4. bay — to keep at bay
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. bay — a part of the sea
  10. key — for a lock
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. bear — the animal
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. cold — not warm
  15. key — the most important part
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. bay — a horse colour
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. key — in music
  22. pitch — completely
  23. stem — to come from
  24. cold — an illness

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