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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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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: cell · bear · capital · season · snap · root · tear · face

  1. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. tear — from crying
  4. bear — the animal
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. bear — the animal
  8. season — in sport
  9. capital — money
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. root — of a plant
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. face — to confront
  14. season — of the year
  15. root — of a word
  16. face — to point toward
  17. cell — a phone
  18. snap — to click
  19. capital — a city
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. face — part of the head
  22. root — the cause
  23. tear — from crying
  24. cell — in biology

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