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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: pop · root · cold · face · mark · plane · shower · ball

  1. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  2. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  3. The ________________ took off on time.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a trace
  2. plane — in geometry
  3. plane — an aircraft
  4. root — the cause
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. pop — to visit
  7. ball — a dance
  8. mark — a grade
  9. face — part of the head
  10. ball — a great time
  11. plane — a tool
  12. cold — not warm
  13. root — of a plant
  14. pop — music
  15. face — to confront
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. pop — soda
  18. cold — an illness
  19. shower — rain
  20. face — to point toward
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. root — of a word
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. shower — to wash

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