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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: mark · field · board · face · branch · march · lash · bat

  1. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — an eyelash
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. face — to confront
  4. field — farmland
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. march — the month
  7. board — to get on
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. bat — the animal
  12. branch — a division
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. field — for sport
  15. face — to point toward
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. march — music
  19. field — a subject
  20. march — the month
  21. mark — a grade
  22. mark — a trace
  23. face — part of the head
  24. board — a committee

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