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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. The ________________ went through the wall.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. last — final
  6. bore — to drill
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. season — of the year
  9. face — to confront
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. row — a line
  12. bore — to tire
  13. last — finally
  14. board — to get on
  15. face — part of the head
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. face — to point toward
  20. row — to paddle
  21. last — to go on
  22. board — a committee
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. nail — on a finger

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