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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: board · face · present · ground · band · bowl · file · root

  1. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. ground — crushed
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. face — part of the head
  6. root — the cause
  7. present — there
  8. face — to confront
  9. file — a tool
  10. root — of a word
  11. file — a line of people
  12. ground — a position
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. ground — the earth
  15. band — a music group
  16. board — a committee
  17. band — a ring
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. present — the time now
  20. file — a document
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. root — of a plant
  23. board — to get on
  24. face — to point toward

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