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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. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  2. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — to get on
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. pitch — completely
  4. board — a committee
  5. ball — a dance
  6. rash — hasty
  7. chip — to eat
  8. degree — an amount
  9. ball — a great time
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. rash — a series
  13. clip — to cut
  14. clip — a video
  15. chip — for betting
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. net — after costs
  18. clip — for paper
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. degree — from a university
  21. degree — temperature
  22. net — in sport
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. net — for catching

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