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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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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. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  21. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. face — to point toward
  3. land — to come down
  4. root — of a plant
  5. season — in sport
  6. ground — a position
  7. root — the cause
  8. root — of a word
  9. face — to confront
  10. ground — crushed
  11. season — of the year
  12. plane — a tool
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. land — ground
  15. land — a country
  16. kid — to tease
  17. ground — the earth
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. racket — a loud noise
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. kid — child
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. racket — for tennis

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