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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. David sat on the ________________.
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. face — to confront
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. row — to paddle
  7. rock — music
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. rock — a stone
  10. row — a line
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. present — the time now
  13. fine — high quality
  14. present — there
  15. swing — in golf
  16. face — to point toward
  17. face — part of the head
  18. fine — all right
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. present — a gift
  21. swing — music
  22. field — a subject
  23. field — for sport
  24. field — farmland

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