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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: plane · game · wake · bat · track · face · leaves · present

  1. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. face — to confront
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. game — a match
  5. game — wild animals
  6. face — to point toward
  7. present — there
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. bat — the animal
  10. plane — a tool
  11. track — to keep track
  12. present — a gift
  13. track — a song
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. face — part of the head
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. wake — a trail
  24. track — a path

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