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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 girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  11. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. board — a committee
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. vault — a safe
  11. leaves — of a tree
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. cue — a signal
  14. board — to get on
  15. bat — the animal
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. cue — for pool
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. cue — a hint
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. leaves — to go away
  23. plane — a tool
  24. row — to paddle

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