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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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. lean — thin
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. lie — to recline
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. game — a match
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. cold — not warm
  14. fork — in a road
  15. lean — to bend
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. rush — hurry
  18. board — to get on
  19. game — wild animals
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. cold — an illness
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. pitch — completely

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