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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. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  4. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. board — to get on
  4. board — a flat piece
  5. spring — of water
  6. spring — the season
  7. spring — a coil
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. court — of law
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. court — for sport
  13. swing — music
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. squash — the sport
  16. swing — to play on
  17. swing — in golf
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. squash — to crush
  20. court — of a king
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. snap — to click
  23. sharp — clever
  24. coach — a trainer

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