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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. face — part of the head
  6. bass — low music
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. face — to point toward
  9. sharp — clever
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. field — a subject
  15. chair — a leader
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. bass — the fish
  21. ruler — a monarch
  22. field — for sport
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. face — to confront

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