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

Word bank: board · plane · branch · face · wake · kid · current · lean

  1. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. The ________________ took off on time.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. board — to get on
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. kid — to tease
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. current — happening now
  8. face — part of the head
  9. lean — to bend
  10. lean — thin
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. current — of water
  14. face — to confront
  15. plane — an aircraft
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. wake — a trail
  18. kid — child
  19. branch — a division
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. current — electric
  23. face — to point toward
  24. plane — a tool

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