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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  19. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. board — a committee
  3. mate — to breed
  4. wound — an injury
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. dip — to sink
  8. roll — a cake
  9. mate — a partner
  10. season — of the year
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. roll — a list
  14. mate — a friend
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. board — to get on
  17. game — a match
  18. jam — a tight spot
  19. jam — to spread on bread
  20. wound — an injury
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. game — wild animals
  23. jam — in traffic
  24. board — a flat piece

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