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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: cold · root · branch · shower · rush · season · rest · face

  1. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. face — part of the head
  3. rush — hurry
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. shower — to wash
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. season — in sport
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. rest — what's left
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. cold — an illness
  12. shower — rain
  13. branch — a division
  14. rest — what's left
  15. face — to confront
  16. root — of a word
  17. root — of a plant
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. rest — a break
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. root — the cause
  23. cold — not warm
  24. season — of the year

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