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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: march · file · board · game · toast · face

  1. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. march — the month
  3. face — to confront
  4. toast — the most admired
  5. file — a tool
  6. face — part of the head
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. game — wild animals
  9. file — a document
  10. face — to point toward
  11. toast — bread
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. game — a match
  14. board — to get on
  15. file — a line of people
  16. toast — a drink to someone
  17. march — music
  18. march — the month

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