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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. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. face — to confront
  3. dip — a sauce
  4. track — a path
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. dip — to sink
  7. chest — of your body
  8. track — to keep track
  9. staff — employees
  10. last — finally
  11. face — part of the head
  12. staff — employees
  13. track — a song
  14. staff — a stick
  15. field — for sport
  16. chest — of your body
  17. field — a subject
  18. chest — a box
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. field — farmland
  21. face — to point toward
  22. last — final
  23. last — to go on
  24. board — to get on

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