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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: bass · root · capital · face · bulb · march · rush · straw

  1. I've got to change the light ________________.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. bass — the fish
  3. bulb — of a plant
  4. face — to confront
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. face — part of the head
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. bulb — for light
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. rush — hurry
  12. face — to point toward
  13. march — the month
  14. capital — money
  15. root — the cause
  16. capital — a city
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. root — of a plant
  20. march — music
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. root — of a word
  23. march — the month
  24. bass — low music

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