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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: dip · court · track · straw · field · chair · bore · root

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. root — of a plant
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. chair — a leader
  7. track — a path
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. court — of law
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. root — the cause
  12. bore — to drill
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. bore — to tire
  15. track — to keep track
  16. dip — to sink
  17. field — for sport
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. root — of a word
  20. court — for sport
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. field — a subject
  23. track — a song
  24. court — of a king

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