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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. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. board — to get on
  2. staff — a stick
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. staff — employees
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. charge — in control
  9. rule — government
  10. stock — goods
  11. pound — a weight
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. cold — an illness
  14. charge — a price
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. staff — employees
  17. charge — electricity
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. cold — not warm
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. stock — shares
  23. rule — a law
  24. board — a committee

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