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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 116 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.

Make a worksheet

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: field · cold · face · bank · march · root · staff · spell

  1. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  24. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. root — of a word
  3. field — for sport
  4. root — of a plant
  5. root — the cause
  6. cold — an illness
  7. face — to confront
  8. spell — letters
  9. staff — employees
  10. staff — a stick
  11. spell — a short time
  12. march — music
  13. march — the month
  14. bank — for money
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. staff — employees
  17. field — a subject
  18. cold — not warm
  19. spell — magic
  20. face — to point toward
  21. field — farmland
  22. face — part of the head
  23. bank — of a river
  24. bank — for money

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