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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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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: kid · rule · capital · face · root · pound · craft · race

  1. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. face — to point toward
  3. face — to confront
  4. root — the cause
  5. race — a contest
  6. race — the arms race
  7. kid — child
  8. face — part of the head
  9. pound — a weight
  10. craft — boats
  11. craft — a skill
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. capital — money
  14. rule — a law
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. capital — a city
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. kid — to tease
  22. root — of a plant
  23. rule — government
  24. race — humankind

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