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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 124 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. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. My mare is ________________ in color.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  16. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  17. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  18. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — to get on
  2. net — after costs
  3. charge — a price
  4. tear — from crying
  5. net — in sport
  6. clip — a video
  7. charge — in control
  8. shower — to wash
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. tear — to rip
  11. tear — from crying
  12. clip — to cut
  13. bay — a horse colour
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. bay — a part of the sea
  16. charge — electricity
  17. board — a committee
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. net — for catching
  20. shower — rain
  21. clip — for paper
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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