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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. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. board — a committee
  3. club — a group
  4. spell — a short time
  5. spell — letters
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. tear — to rip
  8. season — of the year
  9. field — for sport
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. field — farmland
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. club — for dancing
  17. spell — magic
  18. club — for golf
  19. tear — from crying
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. board — to get on
  22. field — a subject
  23. season — in sport
  24. tear — from crying

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