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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: lean · wind · face · current · cold · field · track · rock

  1. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. field — a subject
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. track — a song
  6. cold — not warm
  7. current — happening now
  8. current — electric
  9. rock — music
  10. lean — to bend
  11. cold — an illness
  12. face — to confront
  13. track — to keep track
  14. field — for sport
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. current — of water
  17. lean — thin
  18. field — farmland
  19. rock — a stone
  20. wind — moving air
  21. track — a path
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. wind — moving air
  24. face — to point toward

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