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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. board — to get on
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. rash — a series
  8. leaves — lets stay
  9. land — to come down
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. race — humankind
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. race — the arms race
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. bat — the animal
  16. land — ground
  17. mine — for digging
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. leaves — of a tree
  20. race — a contest
  21. land — a country
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. rash — hasty

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