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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

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

Word bank: face · cell · patient · capital · press · root

  1. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. capital — a city
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. cell — in biology
  7. cell — a phone
  8. root — of a word
  9. face — to confront
  10. capital — money
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. press — newspapers
  14. press — a publisher
  15. face — to point toward
  16. root — of a plant
  17. root — the cause
  18. press — to push

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