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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. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. capital — money
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. fall — the season
  6. board — a committee
  7. branch — a division
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. rule — government
  10. swing — to play on
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. fall — to drop
  13. bat — the animal
  14. board — to get on
  15. swing — in golf
  16. drill — a practice
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. capital — a city
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. drill — army training
  21. drill — the tool
  22. rule — a law
  23. swing — music
  24. fall — to drop

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