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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: capital · temple · face · season · rush · chair

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. When was this ________________ built?
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. face — to confront
  6. capital — money
  7. temple — side of the head
  8. season — in sport
  9. chair — a leader
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. face — part of the head
  12. rush — hurry
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. face — to point toward
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. season — of the year
  18. capital — a big letter

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