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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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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 players ran onto the football ________________.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. face — to confront
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. face — part of the head
  5. foot — a measure
  6. field — for sport
  7. field — farmland
  8. root — of a plant
  9. root — the cause
  10. last — finally
  11. last — final
  12. pitch — completely
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. stem — to come from
  15. rest — what's left
  16. rest — a break
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. rest — what's left
  20. last — to go on
  21. field — a subject
  22. root — of a word
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. face — to point toward

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