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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. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — to get on
  2. season — of the year
  3. spell — letters
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. spell — magic
  6. board — a committee
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. net — for catching
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. perch — the fish
  11. bass — low music
  12. season — in sport
  13. net — in sport
  14. spell — a short time
  15. stock — goods
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. net — after costs
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. bass — the fish
  20. stock — shares
  21. bark — to shout
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. perch — for a bird

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