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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. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  12. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  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. board — a flat piece
  2. march — music
  3. jam — to spread on bread
  4. object — a thing
  5. object — to protest
  6. jam — in traffic
  7. court — of law
  8. board — a committee
  9. stock — shares
  10. march — the month
  11. jam — a tight spot
  12. object — an aim
  13. land — a country
  14. march — the month
  15. land — to come down
  16. board — to get on
  17. field — farmland
  18. field — for sport
  19. land — ground
  20. court — of a king
  21. court — for sport
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. field — a subject
  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