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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 116 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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. pass — to succeed
  4. season — of the year
  5. cap — a lid
  6. row — a line
  7. band — a music group
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. face — to confront
  10. pass — a permit
  11. face — to point toward
  12. pass — to spend time
  13. row — to paddle
  14. root — of a word
  15. cap — of ice
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. cap — a hat
  18. root — the cause
  19. band — a ring
  20. root — of a plant
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. saw — the tool
  23. saw — the tool
  24. face — part of the head

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