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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: bowl · field · bat · rest · saw · row · track · face

  1. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. face — to confront
  3. track — a song
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. row — to paddle
  6. bat — the animal
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. field — a subject
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. field — farmland
  13. rest — what's left
  14. saw — the tool
  15. face — to point toward
  16. row — a line
  17. track — to keep track
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. field — for sport
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. face — part of the head
  22. track — a path
  23. saw — the tool
  24. rest — a break

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