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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. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. hand — help
  3. stock — shares
  4. present — the time now
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. board — to get on
  7. chest — of your body
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. chest — of your body
  10. present — a gift
  11. spell — a short time
  12. can — to be able to
  13. spell — letters
  14. chest — a box
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. stock — goods
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. spell — magic
  20. can — a tin
  21. hand — in cards
  22. present — there
  23. board — a flat piece
  24. can — a tin

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