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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. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  2. When will it ________________ you to start?
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  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. suit — to fit
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. march — the month
  5. spell — letters
  6. suit — in cards
  7. march — music
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. suit — clothes
  10. spell — magic
  11. bound — tied together
  12. bat — the animal
  13. spring — a coil
  14. spell — a short time
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. bound — obliged
  17. tube — a container
  18. tube — the underground
  19. bound — certain
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. march — the month
  22. spring — of water
  23. spring — the season
  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