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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 captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. board — to get on
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. land — a country
  4. chair — a leader
  5. clip — a video
  6. clip — to cut
  7. mouse — for a computer
  8. degree — temperature
  9. clip — for paper
  10. board — a committee
  11. degree — from a university
  12. club — a group
  13. club — for golf
  14. club — for dancing
  15. board — a flat piece
  16. degree — an amount
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. branch — a division
  19. land — ground
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. land — to come down

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