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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. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  15. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  16. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. The tickets are free of ________________.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. band — a music group
  3. land — to come down
  4. charge — in control
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. board — a committee
  8. pound — a weight
  9. land — a country
  10. board — to get on
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. bat — the animal
  13. stock — shares
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. lie — to recline
  16. charge — electricity
  17. band — a ring
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. charge — a price
  24. stock — goods

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