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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: rash · net · stand · land · date · bay · tear · pitch

  1. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. land — a country
  3. stand — to bear
  4. tear — from crying
  5. date — the fruit
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. bay — to keep at bay
  8. tear — from crying
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. bay — a part of the sea
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. rash — hasty
  14. rash — a series
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. net — in sport
  17. pitch — completely
  18. bay — a horse colour
  19. net — after costs
  20. tear — to rip
  21. net — for catching
  22. land — to come down
  23. land — ground
  24. stand — for spectators

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