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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 116 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 ________________ market has crashed.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  21. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. The people resisted their cruel ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. stock — shares
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. scale — size or range
  5. ground — crushed
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. ground — a position
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. cold — not warm
  11. ground — the earth
  12. scale — in music
  13. clip — for paper
  14. stock — goods
  15. cold — an illness
  16. clip — a video
  17. cue — for pool
  18. cue — a hint
  19. clip — to cut
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. cue — a signal
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. board — to get on
  24. ruler — a monarch

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