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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. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  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 flat piece
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. foot — the bottom
  4. drill — army training
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. content — the amount
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. wind — moving air
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. wind — moving air
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. foot — a measure
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. board — a committee
  17. branch — a division
  18. drill — the tool
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. content — happy
  22. foot — part of the body
  23. drill — a practice
  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