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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: capital · bowl · cap · game · root · kid · staff · plane

  1. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. staff — employees
  3. plane — a tool
  4. kid — child
  5. cap — a hat
  6. game — wild animals
  7. cap — of ice
  8. kid — to tease
  9. cap — a lid
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. root — of a word
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. staff — employees
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. game — a match
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. capital — a city
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. bowl — a dish
  22. root — the cause
  23. capital — money
  24. root — of a plant

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