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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. saw — the tool
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. chip — for betting
  5. clip — to cut
  6. bark — to shout
  7. club — a group
  8. clip — a video
  9. clip — for paper
  10. board — a committee
  11. chip — to eat
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. saw — the tool
  19. club — for golf
  20. board — to get on
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. pitch — completely
  24. club — for dancing

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