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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. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. pass — to succeed
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. cold — not warm
  10. firm — steady
  11. rule — a law
  12. pass — to spend time
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. pass — a permit
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. firm — a company
  18. board — a committee
  19. bat — the animal
  20. firm — decided
  21. board — to get on
  22. cold — an illness
  23. rule — government
  24. bark — to shout

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