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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: root · cabinet · spring · face · degree · march · cold · pound

  1. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. root — the cause
  2. face — part of the head
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. degree — temperature
  5. cold — not warm
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. pound — a weight
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. root — of a word
  10. spring — of water
  11. degree — from a university
  12. cold — an illness
  13. spring — the season
  14. spring — a coil
  15. march — the month
  16. march — the month
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. degree — an amount
  19. root — of a plant
  20. face — to confront
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. march — music
  24. face — to point toward

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