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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 120 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. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — for measuring
  2. face — to confront
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. board — a committee
  5. board — to get on
  6. face — part of the head
  7. cold — not warm
  8. track — a song
  9. file — a document
  10. file — a line of people
  11. cold — an illness
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. hand — in cards
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. file — a tool
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. ruler — a monarch
  21. face — to point toward
  22. track — a path
  23. hand — help
  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