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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. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. fine — all right
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. branch — a division
  5. court — for sport
  6. board — to get on
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. cold — not warm
  9. court — of a king
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. present — a gift
  12. fine — high quality
  13. present — the time now
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. court — of law
  17. present — there
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. cold — an illness
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. leaves — to go away
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. branch — of a tree

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