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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. When are we going to ________________?
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. I can't ________________ this cold.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  10. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  21. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. land — to come down
  3. squash — the sport
  4. bat — the animal
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. stand — to bear
  7. land — ground
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. stand — for spectators
  10. bank — for money
  11. cold — not warm
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. bank — of a river
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. squash — to crush
  17. land — a country
  18. cold — an illness
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. bank — for money
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. lie — to recline
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. board — to get on

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