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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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. jam — to spread on bread
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. band — a ring
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. board — a committee
  7. object — a thing
  8. pound — a weight
  9. object — an aim
  10. board — to get on
  11. season — of the year
  12. jam — in traffic
  13. present — a gift
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. band — a music group
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. object — to protest
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. jam — a tight spot
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. present — the time now
  23. season — in sport
  24. pound — to hit hard

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