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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 · spring · file · mark · game · wound · rush · face

  1. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a grade
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. wound — an injury
  4. wound — an injury
  5. file — a document
  6. game — wild animals
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. spring — a coil
  9. game — a match
  10. spring — the season
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. face — to point toward
  13. spring — of water
  14. file — a tool
  15. mark — a trace
  16. rush — hurry
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. file — a line of people
  19. board — to get on
  20. face — part of the head
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. board — a committee
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. face — to confront

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