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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: rest · root · capital · rule · pitcher · cell

  1. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. rest — a break
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. rule — government
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. rest — what's left
  8. rule — a law
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. capital — money
  11. capital — a city
  12. root — of a plant
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. cell — in biology
  15. root — of a word
  16. rest — what's left
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. root — the cause

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