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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  23. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. board — to get on
  2. wind — moving air
  3. hand — in cards
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. hand — help
  6. spell — letters
  7. stand — to bear
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. wind — moving air
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. bat — the animal
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. pit — a hole
  17. spell — magic
  18. stand — for spectators
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. board — a flat piece
  21. spell — a short time
  22. vault — a safe
  23. board — a committee
  24. pit — in a race

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