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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: court · face · rush · saw · patient · current · bat · board

  1. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. saw — the tool
  3. face — to point toward
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. board — to get on
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. face — to confront
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. face — part of the head
  10. court — for sport
  11. court — of a king
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. court — of law
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. rush — hurry
  17. current — of water
  18. bat — the animal
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. current — electric
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. saw — the tool
  24. current — happening now

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