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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  15. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  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. land — ground
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. ball — a great time
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. cue — a signal
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. land — to come down
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. stock — shares
  12. toast — a drink to someone
  13. board — to get on
  14. toast — bread
  15. toast — the most admired
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. cue — a hint
  18. band — a ring
  19. band — a music group
  20. stock — goods
  21. ball — a dance
  22. cue — for pool
  23. land — a country
  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