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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 120 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 captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. board — to get on
  3. mug — a face
  4. spring — a coil
  5. mug — a cup
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. spring — of water
  9. plane — a tool
  10. court — of law
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. mug — to rob
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. mine — for digging
  16. court — for sport
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. court — of a king
  24. spring — the season

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