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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. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. board — to get on
  2. key — for a lock
  3. game — a match
  4. board — a committee
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. prune — to trim
  8. cold — an illness
  9. game — wild animals
  10. net — after costs
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. net — for catching
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. net — in sport
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. prune — to trim
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. key — the most important part
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. cold — not warm
  22. key — in music
  23. fine — all right
  24. fine — high quality

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