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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: capital · prune · last · mouse · root · coach · march · face

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. face — part of the head
  3. root — of a word
  4. face — to confront
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. capital — money
  7. last — final
  8. last — to go on
  9. prune — to trim
  10. prune — to trim
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. march — music
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. root — of a plant
  15. march — the month
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. root — the cause
  18. face — to point toward
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. march — the month
  23. capital — a city
  24. mouse — the animal

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