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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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. chest — a box
  4. field — a subject
  5. chest — of your body
  6. fine — a penalty
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. face — part of the head
  9. fine — high quality
  10. face — to point toward
  11. land — ground
  12. ball — a dance
  13. can — a tin
  14. field — for sport
  15. land — to come down
  16. face — to confront
  17. can — a tin
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. can — to be able to
  20. land — a country
  21. ball — a great time
  22. field — farmland
  23. fine — all right
  24. chest — of your body

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