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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 120 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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. board — a committee
  3. present — there
  4. current — happening now
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. row — a line
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. current — of water
  12. row — to paddle
  13. wound — an injury
  14. board — to get on
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. kick — in football
  17. present — a gift
  18. wound — an injury
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. current — electric
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. present — the time now
  24. vault — a safe

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