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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 don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. mouse — for a computer
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. board — to get on
  6. club — a group
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. board — a committee
  11. craft — a skill
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. craft — boats
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. club — for dancing
  17. date — the fruit
  18. cold — not warm
  19. bat — the animal
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. club — for golf
  23. cold — an illness
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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