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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. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. dip — to sink
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. band — a ring
  7. bark — to shout
  8. sharp — clever
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. wind — moving air
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. rest — what's left
  13. rest — a break
  14. band — a music group
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. rest — what's left
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. board — to get on
  20. board — a committee
  21. wind — moving air
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. bat — the animal

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