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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 116 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: scale · board · current · face · rash · capital · wound · field

  1. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. board — a committee
  4. field — for sport
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. rash — a series
  8. rash — hasty
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. board — to get on
  11. capital — money
  12. current — electric
  13. field — farmland
  14. capital — a city
  15. field — a subject
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. wound — an injury
  18. face — part of the head
  19. current — of water
  20. face — to confront
  21. wound — an injury
  22. current — happening now
  23. scale — size or range
  24. scale — in music

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