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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. pass — a permit
  3. board — a committee
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. scale — in music
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. shower — to wash
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. board — to get on
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. kid — to tease
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. shower — rain
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. pass — to spend time
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. scale — size or range
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. pass — to succeed
  23. kid — child
  24. bowl — a dish

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