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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: root · ground · capital · fall · row · swing · press · mate

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. root — the cause
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. mate — to breed
  5. mate — a friend
  6. press — newspapers
  7. fall — to drop
  8. swing — music
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. root — of a plant
  11. ground — crushed
  12. root — of a word
  13. capital — money
  14. ground — a position
  15. ground — the earth
  16. mate — a partner
  17. fall — to drop
  18. fall — the season
  19. row — a line
  20. press — a publisher
  21. press — to push
  22. swing — to play on
  23. swing — in golf
  24. row — to paddle

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