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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 had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. I can't ________________ this cold.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. field — farmland
  3. field — for sport
  4. mate — to breed
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. file — a tool
  8. face — to confront
  9. mate — a partner
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. stand — to bear
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. craft — a handicraft
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. face — to point toward
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. craft — a skill
  19. file — a document
  20. field — a subject
  21. file — a line of people
  22. craft — boats
  23. mate — a friend
  24. stand — on your feet

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