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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. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. I can't ________________ this cold.
  7. The tickets are free of ________________.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. board — a committee
  3. content — the amount
  4. charge — in control
  5. field — for sport
  6. stand — to bear
  7. charge — a price
  8. content — happy
  9. charge — electricity
  10. field — farmland
  11. spell — a short time
  12. spell — magic
  13. spell — letters
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. board — to get on
  16. rash — hasty
  17. face — to confront
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. field — a subject
  21. rash — a series
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. face — part of the head
  24. content — videos and posts

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