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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. board — to get on
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. lean — thin
  5. face — part of the head
  6. fine — high quality
  7. lean — to bend
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. scale — in music
  12. fine — all right
  13. face — to point toward
  14. board — a committee
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. fine — a penalty
  18. face — to confront
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. scale — size or range
  21. march — the month
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. snap — to click
  24. march — music

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