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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: bark · bulb · bear · firm · field · pit · pitch · lie

  1. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. I've got to change the light ________________.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. The light ________________ burned out.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. firm — steady
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. bark — to shout
  7. bulb — for light
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. pit — a hole
  12. firm — decided
  13. firm — a company
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. field — farmland
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. pitch — completely
  18. bulb — for light
  19. pit — in a race
  20. lie — to recline
  21. bear — the animal
  22. field — a subject
  23. field — for sport
  24. bear — the animal

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