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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 the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. sharp — clever
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. face — to point toward
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. face — to confront
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. board — to get on
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. staff — a stick
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. kick — in football
  16. land — a country
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. staff — employees
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. staff — employees
  22. face — part of the head
  23. board — a committee
  24. land — to come down

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