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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 ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  17. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  18. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. He has no idea where the ________________ is.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. cold — an illness
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. present — there
  9. cold — not warm
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. pitch — completely
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. board — to get on
  15. present — the time now
  16. board — a committee
  17. leaves — of a tree
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. present — a gift
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. safe — a strongbox

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