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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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — to get on
  2. cold — an illness
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. club — for golf
  7. chip — for betting
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. club — a group
  10. craft — a skill
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. tear — from crying
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. tear — from crying
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. vault — a safe
  18. craft — boats
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. chip — to eat
  21. tear — to rip
  22. board — a committee
  23. club — for dancing
  24. cold — not warm

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