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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.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  17. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. board — a flat piece
  5. board — a committee
  6. bowl — to roll
  7. chest — of your body
  8. wind — moving air
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. chest — of your body
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. wind — moving air
  13. bat — the animal
  14. board — to get on
  15. bank — for money
  16. bank — for money
  17. bank — of a river
  18. bat — for baseball

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