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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. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. present — a gift
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. board — to get on
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. board — a committee
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. kid — to tease
  11. hand — in cards
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. spring — the season
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. spring — of water
  18. spring — a coil
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. kid — child
  21. present — there
  22. hand — help
  23. ruler — a monarch
  24. mine — for digging

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