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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: mate · ball · pitch · tear · bark · rush · field · foot

  1. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. foot — part of the body
  3. foot — a measure
  4. field — for sport
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. rush — hurry
  8. tear — from crying
  9. tear — to rip
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. mate — a partner
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. pitch — completely
  14. mate — to breed
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. mate — a friend
  17. bark — to shout
  18. field — a subject
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. ball — a dance
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. field — farmland
  24. tear — from crying

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