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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. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. board — to get on
  2. wound — an injury
  3. lean — thin
  4. lean — to bend
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. wound — an injury
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. hand — in cards
  9. bear — the animal
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. saw — the tool
  12. cold — an illness
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. saw — the tool
  16. bear — the animal
  17. tube — a container
  18. cold — not warm
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. board — a committee
  23. tube — the underground
  24. hand — help

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