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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 120 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: pitch · coach · stem · last · bulb · bear · hand · pass

  1. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. I've got to change the light ________________.
  13. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. last — to go on
  3. last — finally
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. bear — the animal
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. bear — the animal
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. hand — in cards
  12. bulb — for light
  13. pass — to succeed
  14. bulb — for light
  15. pass — a permit
  16. last — final
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. stem — to come from
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. pitch — completely

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