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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: scale · coach · shower · stem · ball · pitch · field · content

  1. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. field — for sport
  4. field — a subject
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. field — farmland
  8. stem — to come from
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. shower — to wash
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. ball — a dance
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. shower — rain
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. ball — a great time
  19. content — happy
  20. scale — size or range
  21. scale — in music
  22. pitch — completely
  23. content — the amount
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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