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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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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 · stem · court · tear · pound · leaves

  1. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. tear — from crying
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. pitch — completely
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. pound — a weight
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. stem — to come from
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. court — for sport
  12. tear — to rip
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. leaves — lets stay
  15. tear — from crying
  16. court — of law
  17. court — of a king
  18. leaves — to go away

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