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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. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  16. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. board — to get on
  3. last — to go on
  4. last — finally
  5. game — wild animals
  6. track — to keep track
  7. squash — the sport
  8. last — final
  9. toast — bread
  10. root — of a plant
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. squash — to crush
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. board — a flat piece
  16. toast — the most admired
  17. track — a path
  18. row — a line
  19. track — a song
  20. root — of a word
  21. game — a match
  22. toast — a drink to someone
  23. row — to paddle
  24. root — the cause

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