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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
468
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: content · season · shower · press · mark · root · pitch · bark

  1. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. root — of a plant
  3. root — of a word
  4. press — to push
  5. pitch — completely
  6. bark — to shout
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. shower — rain
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. mark — a trace
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. season — in sport
  13. season — of the year
  14. shower — to wash
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. content — happy
  17. root — the cause
  18. press — a publisher
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. content — the amount
  21. mark — a grade
  22. press — newspapers
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. bark — of a tree

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