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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. face — part of the head
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. fall — the season
  5. mug — a face
  6. ground — the earth
  7. foot — a measure
  8. field — farmland
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. face — to point toward
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. ground — crushed
  13. board — a committee
  14. fall — to drop
  15. face — to confront
  16. foot — the bottom
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. mug — a cup
  19. board — to get on
  20. field — a subject
  21. field — for sport
  22. mug — to rob
  23. ground — a position
  24. fall — to drop

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