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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. row — a line
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. bore — to drill
  5. game — wild animals
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. board — to get on
  8. bore — to tire
  9. stock — goods
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. board — a committee
  12. game — a match
  13. season — of the year
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. stock — shares
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. row — to paddle
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. board — a flat piece
  24. season — in 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