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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. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  8. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — to get on
  2. saw — the tool
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. bat — the animal
  5. board — a committee
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. ruler — a monarch
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. chest — a box
  11. branch — a division
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. season — of the year
  15. season — in sport
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. wound — an injury
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. chest — of your body
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. wound — an injury
  23. chest — of your body
  24. saw — the tool

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