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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. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. I've got to change the light ________________.
  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. chest — of your body
  2. game — a match
  3. bulb — of a plant
  4. chest — of your body
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. board — a committee
  8. chest — a box
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. row — a line
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. board — to get on
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. deal — to handle
  15. prune — to trim
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. game — wild animals
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. prune — to trim
  22. bulb — for light
  23. bulb — for light
  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