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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: pass · face · cap · cold · staff · root · season · chest

  1. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. cap — a hat
  3. root — of a plant
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. season — in sport
  6. face — to point toward
  7. season — of the year
  8. chest — of your body
  9. chest — of your body
  10. root — of a word
  11. staff — employees
  12. cap — a lid
  13. chest — a box
  14. face — part of the head
  15. cold — an illness
  16. staff — employees
  17. staff — a stick
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. pass — a permit
  20. root — the cause
  21. cold — not warm
  22. pass — to succeed
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. face — to confront

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