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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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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: drill · season · nail · root · capital · face · branch · ground

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. The ________________ went through the wall.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. branch — a division
  4. capital — money
  5. root — the cause
  6. season — in sport
  7. capital — a city
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. drill — army training
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. face — to confront
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. root — of a plant
  15. ground — the earth
  16. drill — a practice
  17. season — of the year
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. face — part of the head
  21. drill — the tool
  22. face — to point toward
  23. ground — a position
  24. root — of a word

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