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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. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. board — a committee
  3. spring — a coil
  4. root — the cause
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. prune — to trim
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. pop — to visit
  11. prune — to trim
  12. root — of a word
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. pop — music
  17. root — of a plant
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. pop — soda
  20. spring — the season
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. wake — a trail
  23. spring — of water
  24. board — to get on

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