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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. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  2. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. My mare is ________________ in color.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a part of the sea
  2. board — a committee
  3. kid — to tease
  4. band — a music group
  5. board — to get on
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. degree — from a university
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. field — a subject
  11. net — after costs
  12. degree — temperature
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. bay — a horse colour
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. field — for sport
  18. field — farmland
  19. band — a ring
  20. bay — to keep at bay
  21. degree — an amount
  22. net — in sport
  23. kid — child
  24. net — for catching

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