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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. field — a subject
  3. game — a match
  4. board — a committee
  5. board — to get on
  6. firm — a company
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. game — wild animals
  9. cold — an illness
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. rest — what's left
  12. rest — what's left
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. rest — a break
  18. field — farmland
  19. cold — not warm
  20. firm — decided
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. firm — steady
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. field — for sport

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