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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 120 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: branch · field · root · band · face · sharp · chair · deal

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. face — to point toward
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. band — a ring
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. face — part of the head
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. chair — a leader
  10. root — the cause
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. face — to confront
  13. branch — a division
  14. root — of a plant
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. deal — an agreement
  19. field — a subject
  20. field — for sport
  21. sharp — clever
  22. root — of a word
  23. band — a music group
  24. deal — to handle

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