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

Word bank: stem · race · deal · face · court · capital

  1. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. face — to confront
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. race — the arms race
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. capital — money
  7. race — humankind
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. court — of law
  10. face — to point toward
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. deal — to handle
  13. court — of a king
  14. court — for sport
  15. face — part of the head
  16. race — a contest
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. capital — a city

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