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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  18. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. rock — music
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. face — to confront
  5. scale — size or range
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. toast — the most admired
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. face — to point toward
  11. face — part of the head
  12. rock — a stone
  13. capital — a city
  14. kid — to tease
  15. scale — in music
  16. root — of a plant
  17. toast — bread
  18. toast — a drink to someone
  19. branch — a division
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. kid — child
  22. root — the cause
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. capital — money

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