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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. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. rush — hurry
  6. key — the most important part
  7. wound — an injury
  8. key — for a lock
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. row — to paddle
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. board — to get on
  14. wound — an injury
  15. root — of a plant
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. row — a line
  18. wave — with your hand
  19. key — in music
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. root — the cause
  24. root — of a word

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