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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: board · track · cue · drill · swing · season · capital · face

  1. David sat on the ________________.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  20. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. track — to keep track
  3. swing — in golf
  4. drill — a practice
  5. face — to confront
  6. track — a path
  7. board — to get on
  8. season — of the year
  9. cue — for pool
  10. swing — music
  11. season — in sport
  12. capital — a city
  13. drill — army training
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. cue — a hint
  16. track — a song
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. board — a committee
  20. cue — a signal
  21. capital — money
  22. face — to point toward
  23. face — part of the head
  24. drill — the tool

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