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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. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. bat — the animal
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. board — a committee
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. wound — an injury
  7. march — the month
  8. present — a gift
  9. bank — for money
  10. present — there
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. board — to get on
  13. bank — of a river
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. band — a music group
  17. wound — an injury
  18. bank — for money
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. present — the time now
  21. march — the month
  22. band — a ring
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. march — music

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