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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. kid — child
  3. board — a committee
  4. board — to get on
  5. field — a subject
  6. bore — to drill
  7. face — part of the head
  8. lie — to recline
  9. season — in sport
  10. bore — to tire
  11. field — for sport
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. field — farmland
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. face — to point toward
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. season — of the year
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. face — to confront
  24. board — a flat piece

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