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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. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. band — a music group
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. firm — decided
  6. file — a line of people
  7. branch — a division
  8. file — a document
  9. degree — temperature
  10. cell — a phone
  11. file — a tool
  12. pitch — completely
  13. board — to get on
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. band — a ring
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. firm — a company
  18. degree — from a university
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. board — a flat piece
  21. degree — an amount
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. cell — in biology
  24. firm — steady

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