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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. ball — a great time
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. pitch — completely
  5. face — part of the head
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. face — to point toward
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. current — of water
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. cold — an illness
  13. face — to confront
  14. cold — not warm
  15. current — electric
  16. ball — a dance
  17. current — happening now
  18. coach — pulled by horses

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