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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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. The ________________ went through the wall.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. board — to get on
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. hand — in cards
  5. rash — a series
  6. tube — the underground
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. tube — a container
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. board — a committee
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. rash — hasty
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. hand — help
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. trunk — of a tree

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