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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: root · stem · field · pitch · spell · vault · roll · cold

  1. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. We're on a ________________ here.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — an arched ceiling
  2. field — farmland
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. roll — a cake
  6. root — the cause
  7. stem — to come from
  8. cold — not warm
  9. roll — on a roll
  10. spell — magic
  11. roll — a list
  12. root — of a plant
  13. spell — a short time
  14. cold — an illness
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. field — for sport
  18. field — a subject
  19. vault — a safe
  20. spell — letters
  21. root — of a word
  22. pitch — completely
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. cold — the Cold War

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