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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  2. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  3. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. Have you settled on a ________________?
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a plant
  2. board — a committee
  3. root — the cause
  4. root — of a word
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. court — of a king
  7. date — the fruit
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. court — for sport
  11. bat — the animal
  12. field — farmland
  13. board — to get on
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. field — for sport
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. field — a subject
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. court — of law
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. pitch — completely
  24. pitcher — a jug

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