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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. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. clip — for paper
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. board — to get on
  7. kid — to tease
  8. pound — a weight
  9. court — of law
  10. board — a flat piece
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. face — to confront
  14. clip — a video
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. court — for sport
  17. clip — to cut
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. kid — child
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. face — to point toward
  23. face — part of the head
  24. court — of a king

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