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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. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. board — to get on
  3. face — to point toward
  4. degree — an amount
  5. date — the fruit
  6. face — to confront
  7. firm — steady
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. fork — in a road
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. firm — a company
  14. degree — temperature
  15. degree — from a university
  16. firm — decided
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. march — music
  20. march — the month
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. face — part of the head
  23. march — the month
  24. board — a committee

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