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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 124 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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. board — to get on
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. shower — rain
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. cue — for pool
  7. mine — for digging
  8. board — a committee
  9. fork — in a road
  10. scale — in music
  11. bat — the animal
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. cue — a hint
  16. shower — to wash
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. scale — size or range
  21. cue — a signal
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. nail — on a finger

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