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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: wind · wake · chair · face · fork · track · saw · charge

  1. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. The tickets are free of ________________.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. fork — in a road
  3. track — to keep track
  4. track — a song
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. face — part of the head
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. face — to confront
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. wind — moving air
  14. wake — a trail
  15. chair — a leader
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. saw — the tool
  18. track — a path
  19. charge — a price
  20. saw — the tool
  21. charge — electricity
  22. charge — in control
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. wind — moving air

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