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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. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. My mare is ________________ in color.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. board — to get on
  5. land — a country
  6. board — a committee
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. fork — in a road
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. pitch — completely
  11. bay — a part of the sea
  12. land — ground
  13. cold — not warm
  14. cold — an illness
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. bass — the fish
  19. bass — low music
  20. bay — a horse colour
  21. land — to come down
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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