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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. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. board — to get on
  2. lie — to recline
  3. wave — a sudden rise
  4. net — after costs
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. board — a committee
  7. last — to go on
  8. net — for catching
  9. cold — not warm
  10. present — there
  11. net — in sport
  12. last — final
  13. last — finally
  14. present — a gift
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. game — wild animals
  19. game — a match
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. cold — an illness
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. present — the time now
  24. game — a kind of play

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