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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. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. board — a committee
  3. season — in sport
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. face — to confront
  6. clip — to cut
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. current — happening now
  9. current — of water
  10. current — electric
  11. face — to point toward
  12. clip — a video
  13. bound — tied together
  14. board — to get on
  15. clip — for paper
  16. mark — a trace
  17. saw — the tool
  18. face — part of the head
  19. mark — a grade
  20. bound — obliged
  21. bound — certain
  22. saw — the tool
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. season — of the year

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