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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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. snap — to click
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. spring — the season
  5. bear — the animal
  6. chair — a leader
  7. file — a tool
  8. board — to get on
  9. file — a line of people
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. file — a document
  13. fork — in a road
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. bear — the animal
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. spring — of water
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. spring — a coil

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