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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. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. board — to get on
  3. perch — the fish
  4. board — a flat piece
  5. scale — in music
  6. staff — employees
  7. scale — size or range
  8. shower — to wash
  9. pit — a hole
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. last — to go on
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. staff — employees
  14. shower — rain
  15. last — final
  16. wind — moving air
  17. pit — a fruit stone
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. last — finally
  20. pit — in a race
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. staff — a stick
  24. wind — moving air

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