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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 currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. dip — a sauce
  4. chip — to eat
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. board — to get on
  8. file — a document
  9. file — a line of people
  10. lie — to recline
  11. chip — for betting
  12. degree — an amount
  13. dip — to sink
  14. degree — temperature
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. degree — from a university
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. file — a tool
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. bark — to shout
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. pitcher — a jug

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