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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. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. root — the cause
  2. press — to push
  3. root — of a word
  4. press — a publisher
  5. spring — a coil
  6. court — of law
  7. spring — the season
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. ball — a dance
  11. face — part of the head
  12. cap — a hat
  13. face — to point toward
  14. cap — a lid
  15. ball — a great time
  16. spring — of water
  17. court — of a king
  18. press — newspapers
  19. cap — of ice
  20. court — for sport
  21. snap — to click
  22. face — to confront
  23. root — of a plant
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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