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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 116 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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. board — to get on
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. spring — a coil
  5. snap — to click
  6. capital — money
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. file — a line of people
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. file — a document
  11. spring — the season
  12. file — a tool
  13. board — a committee
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. root — of a plant
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. root — of a word
  18. root — the cause
  19. ruler — a monarch
  20. spring — of water
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. capital — a city

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