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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: bass · stem · cold · root · pitcher · field · season · drill

  1. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. drill — the tool
  3. field — farmland
  4. field — a subject
  5. field — for sport
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. bass — low music
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. drill — army training
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. season — of the year
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. root — of a plant
  15. cold — an illness
  16. root — the cause
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. cold — not warm
  19. stem — to come from
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. bass — the fish
  22. root — of a word
  23. season — in sport
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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