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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 116 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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. board — a committee
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. bear — the animal
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. drill — a practice
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. board — to get on
  16. drill — the tool
  17. cold — an illness
  18. perch — the fish
  19. bear — the animal
  20. hand — in cards
  21. cold — not warm
  22. drill — army training
  23. bear — to put up with
  24. calf — a young 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