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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. rash — a series
  10. rash — hasty
  11. last — finally
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. season — of the year
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. board — to get on
  16. board — a committee
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. last — final
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. last — to go on
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. season — in sport

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