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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. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — a trail
  2. squash — to crush
  3. cold — an illness
  4. board — a committee
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. field — a subject
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. face — part of the head
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. board — to get on
  11. cue — for pool
  12. pit — a hole
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. cue — a hint
  15. field — for sport
  16. pit — in a race
  17. pit — a fruit stone
  18. face — to point toward
  19. field — farmland
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. face — to confront
  22. cue — a signal
  23. cold — not warm
  24. squash — the sport

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