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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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. mate — to breed
  3. board — a committee
  4. march — music
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. board — to get on
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. last — to go on
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. last — final
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. deal — to handle
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. stock — goods
  18. mate — a friend
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. stock — shares
  21. march — the month
  22. last — finally
  23. mate — a partner
  24. march — the month

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