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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: saw · bat · root · deal · coach · face · kid · stem

  1. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. stem — to come from
  4. deal — a big deal
  5. face — to point toward
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. kid — child
  9. root — of a plant
  10. face — to confront
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. saw — the tool
  13. saw — the tool
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. root — of a word
  16. bat — the animal
  17. root — the cause
  18. coach — pulled by horses
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. deal — to handle
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. kid — to tease

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