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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 116 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. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  2. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — in geometry
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. plane — a tool
  4. fork — in a road
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. field — a subject
  7. field — for sport
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. face — to confront
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. wake — a trail
  13. club — for dancing
  14. club — for golf
  15. face — part of the head
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. club — a group
  23. field — farmland
  24. face — to point toward

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