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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 116 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 room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. mine — for digging
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. cap — of ice
  7. track — a song
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. root — of a word
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. root — of a plant
  13. fork — in a road
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. stem — to come from
  17. root — the cause
  18. cap — a lid
  19. bat — the animal
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. track — a path
  22. cap — a hat
  23. track — to keep track
  24. fork — a garden tool

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