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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. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. fall — to drop
  4. fall — the season
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. spell — letters
  7. fall — to drop
  8. board — to get on
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. land — to come down
  11. pitch — completely
  12. prune — to trim
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. spell — a short time
  17. land — a country
  18. prune — to trim
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. spell — magic
  22. chair — a leader
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. land — ground

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