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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
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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 · face · band · wind · stick · season · pop · net

  1. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. season — in sport
  4. pop — soda
  5. board — a committee
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. band — a music group
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. season — of the year
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. face — to point toward
  13. net — in sport
  14. pop — to visit
  15. face — part of the head
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. pop — music
  19. wind — moving air
  20. board — to get on
  21. net — for catching
  22. net — after costs
  23. wind — moving air
  24. band — a ring

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