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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. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. cold — an illness
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. face — part of the head
  6. ground — the earth
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. chest — of your body
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. face — to confront
  11. chest — of your body
  12. march — the month
  13. lie — to recline
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. face — to point toward
  18. board — a committee
  19. march — music
  20. board — to get on
  21. ground — crushed
  22. march — the month
  23. ground — a position
  24. cold — not warm

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