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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 116 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. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. drill — army training
  3. board — a committee
  4. board — to get on
  5. present — the time now
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. row — a line
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. present — there
  10. swing — to play on
  11. fork — in a road
  12. swing — in golf
  13. club — a group
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. swing — music
  16. drill — the tool
  17. capital — money
  18. club — for dancing
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. present — a gift
  21. drill — a practice
  22. club — for golf
  23. capital — a city
  24. row — to paddle

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