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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. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — to attach or keep to
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. content — happy
  4. present — there
  5. board — a committee
  6. net — in sport
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. present — a gift
  11. net — for catching
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. content — the amount
  14. row — a line
  15. file — a line of people
  16. net — after costs
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. row — to paddle
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. present — the time now
  21. file — a document
  22. board — to get on
  23. file — a tool
  24. trunk — of a tree

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