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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 like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. board — a committee
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. spring — a coil
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. spring — the season
  9. spring — of water
  10. spell — a short time
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. board — to get on
  13. dip — to sink
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. clip — a video
  18. clip — for paper
  19. spell — magic
  20. fork — in a road
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. clip — to cut
  23. spell — letters
  24. fork — a garden tool

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