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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'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  22. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. spring — of water
  3. deal — to handle
  4. spell — a short time
  5. march — the month
  6. can — a tin
  7. hand — in cards
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. spring — the season
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. stock — shares
  12. spring — a coil
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. march — music
  16. stock — goods
  17. can — to be able to
  18. spell — magic
  19. hand — help
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. can — a tin
  22. board — to get on
  23. march — the month
  24. spell — letters

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