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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  18. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. face — to confront
  4. face — part of the head
  5. craft — boats
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. snap — to click
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. face — to point toward
  10. net — after costs
  11. board — to get on
  12. rock — a stone
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. craft — a handicraft
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. net — in sport
  17. board — a committee
  18. rock — to move gently
  19. craft — a skill
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. net — for catching
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. band — a music group
  24. band — a ring

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