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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. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. I can't ________________ this cold.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. tube — the underground
  3. court — for sport
  4. face — part of the head
  5. board — a committee
  6. track — to keep track
  7. board — to get on
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. face — to point toward
  11. track — a song
  12. face — to confront
  13. tube — a container
  14. track — a path
  15. drill — army training
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. court — of a king
  18. drill — a practice
  19. branch — a division
  20. stand — to bear
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. drill — the tool
  23. court — of law
  24. tube — in a tire

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