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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 116 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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. kick — in football
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. ground — a position
  5. board — to get on
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. ground — the earth
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. band — a music group
  11. band — a ring
  12. swing — in golf
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. board — a committee
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. swing — to play on
  17. ground — crushed
  18. swing — music

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