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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: press · ball · root · cold · trunk · rush · face · lean

  1. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. root — the cause
  3. face — to confront
  4. root — of a plant
  5. cold — not warm
  6. lean — to bend
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. cold — an illness
  9. face — to point toward
  10. ball — a dance
  11. rush — hurry
  12. ball — a great time
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. face — part of the head
  16. press — a publisher
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. lean — thin
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. press — to push
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. press — newspapers

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