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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 120 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. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. root — the cause
  4. face — to point toward
  5. court — of law
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. band — a ring
  9. band — a music group
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. court — for sport
  13. face — to confront
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. court — of a king
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. face — part of the head
  19. hide — animal skin
  20. root — of a plant
  21. fork — in a road
  22. root — of a word
  23. lean — to bend
  24. lean — thin

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