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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 captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. board — to get on
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. bat — the animal
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. board — a committee
  7. rush — hurry
  8. club — a group
  9. shower — rain
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. shower — to wash
  14. branch — a division
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. club — for dancing
  17. club — for golf
  18. rush — to hurry

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