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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: dip · last · capital · hand · ball · cell · pop · root

  1. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. cell — a phone
  3. root — of a plant
  4. capital — money
  5. last — finally
  6. pop — to visit
  7. last — to go on
  8. cell — in biology
  9. ball — a dance
  10. dip — to sink
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. capital — a city
  15. pop — music
  16. last — final
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. hand — help
  20. hand — in cards
  21. ball — a great time
  22. root — of a word
  23. root — the cause
  24. dip — to dunk

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