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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. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. I can't ________________ this cold.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — in music
  2. mine — for digging
  3. fork — in a road
  4. face — to point toward
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. game — wild animals
  7. stand — for spectators
  8. game — a match
  9. stand — to bear
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. band — a ring
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. mark — a grade
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. mark — a trace
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. face — to confront
  18. scale — size or range
  19. face — part of the head
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. band — a music group
  24. game — a kind of play

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