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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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. board — to get on
  2. present — there
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. shower — to wash
  5. kid — child
  6. kid — to tease
  7. net — in sport
  8. present — the time now
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. net — after costs
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. rush — hurry
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. net — for catching
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. board — a committee
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. pound — a weight
  21. shower — rain
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. present — a gift
  24. rush — to hurry

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