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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. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  2. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. board — to get on
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. field — a subject
  4. land — ground
  5. file — a tool
  6. field — for sport
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. prune — to trim
  9. field — farmland
  10. face — part of the head
  11. file — a line of people
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. file — a document
  15. board — a committee
  16. prune — to trim
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. face — to confront
  20. racket — a loud noise
  21. face — to point toward
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. land — a country
  24. land — to come down

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