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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. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. Have you settled on a ________________?
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  22. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. wound — an injury
  3. last — final
  4. can — a tin
  5. can — to be able to
  6. can — a tin
  7. last — to go on
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. key — in music
  11. key — the most important part
  12. last — finally
  13. key — for a lock
  14. wound — an injury
  15. date — the fruit
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. cold — not warm
  21. foot — part of the body
  22. board — to get on
  23. cold — an illness
  24. foot — a measure

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