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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: march · stem · cold · cue · face · file · racket · bowl

  1. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. file — a tool
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. cold — not warm
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. file — a document
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. file — a line of people
  9. cold — an illness
  10. cue — for pool
  11. march — music
  12. face — part of the head
  13. face — to confront
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. march — the month
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. cue — a hint
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. march — the month
  23. stem — to come from
  24. cue — a signal

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