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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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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: date · mark · field · scale · pitch · stem

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. mark — a grade
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. stem — to come from
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. scale — in music
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. field — a subject
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. pitch — completely
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. mark — a trace
  15. date — the fruit
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. scale — size or range
  18. field — for sport

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