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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 · field · stem · capital · object · foot · pitch · staff

  1. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. net — after costs
  3. staff — employees
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. capital — a city
  6. object — a thing
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. net — in sport
  9. foot — a measure
  10. pitch — completely
  11. stem — to come from
  12. capital — money
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. field — for sport
  15. net — for catching
  16. object — to protest
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. object — an aim
  19. foot — the bottom
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. staff — employees
  22. field — farmland
  23. field — a subject
  24. pitch — a sports field

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