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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 120 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. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. I can't ________________ this cold.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. rock — music
  4. ball — a dance
  5. foot — the bottom
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. field — a subject
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. ball — a great time
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. game — wild animals
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. rock — a stone
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. field — for sport
  19. stand — to bear
  20. field — farmland
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. game — a match
  23. board — to get on
  24. foot — a measure

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