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

Word bank: field · roll · face · rash · last · wind

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. We're on a ________________ here.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. roll — on a roll
  3. rash — a series
  4. face — to point toward
  5. field — a subject
  6. field — farmland
  7. rash — hasty
  8. last — to go on
  9. wind — moving air
  10. last — finally
  11. roll — a list
  12. field — for sport
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. face — part of the head
  15. wind — moving air
  16. roll — a cake
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. face — to confront

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