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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.

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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: mate · pitch · tear · field · mark · root · court · bulb

  1. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. The light ________________ burned out.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. mate — a partner
  4. bulb — for light
  5. field — farmland
  6. field — a subject
  7. court — for sport
  8. tear — from crying
  9. mark — a grade
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. mate — to breed
  12. pitch — completely
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. mate — a friend
  15. court — of law
  16. root — of a plant
  17. root — the cause
  18. mark — to pay attention
  19. tear — from crying
  20. bulb — for light
  21. mark — a trace
  22. root — of a word
  23. court — of a king
  24. tear — to rip

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