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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 120 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: field · lie · staff · hide · face · rock · pitch · mouse

  1. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  7. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. field — a subject
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. rock — a stone
  5. face — to point toward
  6. lie — to recline
  7. rock — to move gently
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. face — to confront
  10. staff — a stick
  11. field — farmland
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. staff — employees
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. rock — music
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. staff — employees
  19. field — for sport
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. mouse — for a computer
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. face — part of the head
  24. hide — animal skin

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