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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. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. spring — of water
  3. board — to get on
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. mate — a friend
  8. mine — for digging
  9. board — a committee
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. mate — a partner
  13. chair — a leader
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. prune — to trim
  17. spring — a coil
  18. mate — to breed
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. prune — to trim
  21. spring — the season
  22. bass — the fish
  23. bass — low music
  24. board — a flat piece

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