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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 120 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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. The tickets are free of ________________.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. saw — the tool
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. board — to get on
  6. chair — a leader
  7. wind — moving air
  8. degree — an amount
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. sharp — clever
  11. degree — temperature
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. board — a committee
  14. game — a match
  15. saw — the tool
  16. charge — electricity
  17. wind — moving air
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. degree — from a university
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. game — wild animals
  22. charge — a price
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. charge — in control

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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