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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 120 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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. board — to get on
  4. board — a committee
  5. club — for dancing
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. face — to confront
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. hand — in cards
  10. spell — magic
  11. tear — from crying
  12. face — part of the head
  13. spell — letters
  14. race — a contest
  15. club — a group
  16. race — humankind
  17. mine — for digging
  18. tear — from crying
  19. tear — to rip
  20. board — a flat piece
  21. hand — help
  22. club — for golf
  23. spell — a short time
  24. race — the arms race

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