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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. court — for sport
  3. court — of a king
  4. board — a flat piece
  5. mark — a trace
  6. row — a line
  7. march — the month
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. rash — hasty
  10. mark — a grade
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. bore — to tire
  13. wind — moving air
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. row — to paddle
  17. march — music
  18. bore — to drill
  19. court — of law
  20. board — a committee
  21. wind — moving air
  22. mark — to pay attention
  23. rash — a series
  24. board — to get on

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