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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. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. board — to get on
  2. kid — to tease
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. cell — in biology
  5. field — for sport
  6. board — a committee
  7. land — ground
  8. stand — on your feet
  9. rash — hasty
  10. board — a flat piece
  11. cell — a phone
  12. kid — child
  13. stand — for spectators
  14. stand — to bear
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. safe — a strongbox
  18. land — to come down
  19. rash — a series
  20. field — farmland
  21. field — a subject
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. land — a country

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