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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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. cap — a hat
  3. cue — a hint
  4. face — part of the head
  5. swing — to play on
  6. field — farmland
  7. field — a subject
  8. cue — a signal
  9. face — to point toward
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. swing — music
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. swing — in golf
  17. cap — of ice
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. cap — a lid
  21. chair — a leader
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. cue — for pool
  24. field — for sport

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