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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. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. board — to get on
  3. club — for dancing
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. board — a committee
  6. plane — a tool
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. bat — the animal
  11. club — a group
  12. wound — an injury
  13. bore — to drill
  14. wound — an injury
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. season — in sport
  17. season — of the year
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. bore — to tire

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