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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: face · temple · season · capital · root · march · key · kick

  1. This piece is in a major ________________.
  2. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. When was this ________________ built?
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. key — in music
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. march — the month
  6. key — the most important part
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. season — of the year
  9. face — to confront
  10. season — in sport
  11. root — of a plant
  12. temple — side of the head
  13. root — of a word
  14. face — part of the head
  15. key — for a lock
  16. march — music
  17. capital — money
  18. face — to point toward
  19. capital — a city
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. march — the month
  22. root — the cause
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. kick — in football

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