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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. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. board — to get on
  2. club — for golf
  3. shower — to wash
  4. squash — the sport
  5. rule — government
  6. club — for dancing
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. shower — rain
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. rule — a law
  12. board — a committee
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. clip — to cut
  15. chip — for betting
  16. chip — to eat
  17. clip — a video
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. club — a group
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. squash — to crush
  22. clip — for paper
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. rule — to rule out

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