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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. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. wound — an injury
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. season — of the year
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. mug — a cup
  9. mug — a face
  10. bay — a part of the sea
  11. mug — to rob
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. wound — an injury
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. bay — to keep at bay
  16. season — in sport
  17. board — a committee
  18. bay — a horse colour
  19. pop — to visit
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. board — to get on
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. pop — soda
  24. pop — 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