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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: rule · court · root · face · wind · cell

  1. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. court — of law
  3. root — of a plant
  4. court — of a king
  5. cell — in biology
  6. wind — moving air
  7. face — to confront
  8. wind — moving air
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. root — of a word
  11. root — the cause
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. face — part of the head
  14. court — for sport
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. cell — a phone
  17. face — to point toward
  18. rule — government

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