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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: rock · lie · content · fan · board · face · row · swing

  1. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. row — a line
  4. board — a committee
  5. board — to get on
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. rock — a stone
  8. swing — to play on
  9. content — happy
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. swing — music
  14. face — to point toward
  15. face — part of the head
  16. swing — in golf
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. face — to confront
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. row — to paddle
  23. lie — to recline
  24. content — the amount

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