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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. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. season — of the year
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. capital — money
  8. face — to point toward
  9. capital — a city
  10. season — in sport
  11. root — the cause
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. press — a publisher
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. vault — an arched ceiling
  17. vault — a safe
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. press — newspapers
  20. root — of a word
  21. face — to confront
  22. press — to push
  23. root — of a plant
  24. coach — a trainer

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