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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 116 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. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. I've got to change the light ________________.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. band — a music group
  6. board — a committee
  7. vault — a safe
  8. bulb — for light
  9. band — a ring
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. season — of the year
  12. cue — a signal
  13. cue — for pool
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. season — in sport
  16. board — to get on
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. kid — child
  19. cue — a hint
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. kid — to tease
  22. bulb — for light
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. bulb — of a plant

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