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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. When was this ________________ built?
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  21. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. band — a music group
  4. ground — a position
  5. ball — a great time
  6. board — to get on
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. ground — crushed
  13. band — a ring
  14. temple — side of the head
  15. wound — an injury
  16. ball — a dance
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. ground — the earth
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. craft — a skill
  21. craft — boats
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. board — a committee

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