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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 120 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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. march — the month
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. march — music
  9. board — to get on
  10. march — the month
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. pit — a hole
  13. board — a committee
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. hand — in cards
  18. pit — in a race
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. pitch — completely
  23. hand — help
  24. season — in sport

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