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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. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. field — for sport
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. face — to confront
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. hand — in cards
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. lie — to recline
  11. pop — to visit
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. present — the time now
  14. pop — music
  15. field — farmland
  16. face — part of the head
  17. pop — soda
  18. field — a subject
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. face — to point toward
  21. hand — help
  22. fork — in a road
  23. present — there
  24. present — a gift

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