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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 captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. I can't ________________ this cold.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. board — to get on
  2. mate — a friend
  3. band — a ring
  4. file — a line of people
  5. stock — goods
  6. mate — a partner
  7. drill — the tool
  8. file — a document
  9. band — a music group
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. court — for sport
  12. drill — army training
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. court — of law
  16. stock — shares
  17. stand — to bear
  18. court — of a king
  19. mate — to breed
  20. drill — a practice
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. file — a tool
  24. board — a committee

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