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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. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  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 — to get on
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. capital — money
  4. capital — a city
  5. race — humankind
  6. bound — obliged
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. chair — a leader
  9. board — a committee
  10. field — farmland
  11. race — the arms race
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. bound — tied together
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. race — a contest
  16. field — a subject
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. bound — certain
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. stem — to come from
  23. board — a flat piece
  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