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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.

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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 teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  17. We're on a ________________ here.
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a list
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. scale — in music
  4. board — a committee
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. can — a tin
  7. cold — not warm
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. can — to be able to
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. scale — size or range
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. can — a tin
  14. cold — an illness
  15. board — to get on
  16. roll — a cake
  17. roll — on a roll
  18. board — a flat piece

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