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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: lean · present · race · wound · charge · swing · fork · face

  1. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. charge — in control
  3. charge — electricity
  4. charge — a price
  5. face — to confront
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. swing — in golf
  8. swing — to play on
  9. wound — an injury
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. lean — thin
  12. race — humankind
  13. present — a gift
  14. present — there
  15. fork — in a road
  16. face — to point toward
  17. race — the arms race
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. swing — music
  20. present — the time now
  21. race — a contest
  22. face — part of the head
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. lean — to bend

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