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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · present · pitch · plane · lash · stock · wound · racket

  1. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. The ________________ took off on time.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  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. present — a gift
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. plane — a tool
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. stock — goods
  7. stock — shares
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. pitch — completely
  10. plane — an aircraft
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. present — the time now
  14. present — there
  15. wound — an injury
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. wound — an injury
  20. net — after costs
  21. net — for catching
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. net — in sport
  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