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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 116 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: snap · rash · branch · capital · pitch · root · face · plane

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. The ________________ took off on time.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. branch — a division
  3. rash — hasty
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. plane — an aircraft
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. plane — a tool
  12. root — of a plant
  13. root — of a word
  14. snap — to click
  15. face — to confront
  16. capital — money
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. rash — a series
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. root — the cause
  22. face — to point toward
  23. pitch — completely
  24. face — part of the head

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