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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. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. track — a path
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. board — a flat piece
  5. tear — from crying
  6. row — a line
  7. lean — to bend
  8. swing — music
  9. face — to confront
  10. face — part of the head
  11. swing — in golf
  12. scale — in music
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. row — to paddle
  15. tear — from crying
  16. board — to get on
  17. tear — to rip
  18. board — a committee
  19. swing — to play on
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. track — a song
  22. lean — thin
  23. face — to point toward
  24. track — to keep track

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