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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.

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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. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. capital — a city
  3. board — to get on
  4. face — to confront
  5. board — a committee
  6. snap — to click
  7. drill — army training
  8. fork — in a road
  9. bound — obliged
  10. rest — what's left
  11. bound — tied together
  12. capital — money
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. rest — a break
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. bound — certain
  18. drill — the tool
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. board — a flat piece
  21. rest — what's left
  22. drill — a practice
  23. face — part of the head
  24. face — to point toward

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