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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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. current — electric
  3. face — to point toward
  4. wake — a trail
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. swing — to play on
  7. swing — in golf
  8. swing — music
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. rule — a law
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. current — of water
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. field — a subject
  16. field — for sport
  17. current — happening now
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. field — farmland
  21. face — part of the head
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. rule — government
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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