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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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. field — for sport
  4. bound — obliged
  5. ruler — a monarch
  6. plane — a tool
  7. bound — tied together
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. field — a subject
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. cold — not warm
  13. plane — in geometry
  14. field — farmland
  15. face — part of the head
  16. last — finally
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. face — to confront
  19. last — final
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. last — to go on
  23. bound — certain
  24. cold — an illness

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