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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. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  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. mark — a grade
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. file — a tool
  4. field — for sport
  5. field — farmland
  6. field — a subject
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. mark — a trace
  10. rule — a law
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. file — a line of people
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. rule — government
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. face — to point toward
  20. chair — a leader
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. file — a document
  23. face — part of the head
  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