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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. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. board — to get on
  2. rock — music
  3. game — a match
  4. cap — a hat
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. board — a committee
  7. stem — to come from
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. march — the month
  10. cap — of ice
  11. file — a document
  12. file — a tool
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. file — a line of people
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. game — wild animals
  19. hide — animal skin
  20. march — the month
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. cap — a lid
  23. rock — a stone
  24. march — music

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