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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. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. board — to get on
  5. rule — a law
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. game — wild animals
  12. capital — money
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. capital — a city
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. ruler — a monarch
  18. branch — a division
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. rule — government
  24. game — a match

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