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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: season · face · fork · coach · stock · bound · capital · hide

  1. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. face — to point toward
  4. capital — a city
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. capital — money
  7. bound — obliged
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. bound — tied together
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. stock — goods
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. season — in sport
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. bound — certain
  19. stock — shares
  20. fork — in a road
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. face — to confront
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. season — of the year

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