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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. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  15. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. game — a match
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. game — wild animals
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. face — to confront
  7. board — to get on
  8. face — part of the head
  9. drill — a practice
  10. kid — child
  11. kid — to tease
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. root — the cause
  14. board — a committee
  15. board — a flat piece
  16. root — of a plant
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. drill — army training
  19. branch — a division
  20. drill — the tool
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. root — of a word
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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