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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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. ground — a position
  8. root — the cause
  9. row — a line
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. fine — all right
  12. root — of a word
  13. fine — high quality
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. board — a committee
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. ground — the earth
  19. wound — an injury
  20. board — to get on
  21. root — of a plant
  22. wound — an injury
  23. ground — crushed
  24. row — to paddle

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