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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. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  23. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. plane — a tool
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. chair — a leader
  7. field — for sport
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. club — for golf
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. club — a group
  13. season — in sport
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. club — for dancing
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. season — of the year
  19. field — farmland
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. board — to get on
  23. hide — animal skin
  24. field — a subject

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