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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. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  19. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  24. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. lash — an eyelash
  3. track — a path
  4. bat — the animal
  5. pass — a permit
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. track — to keep track
  8. cold — not warm
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. pass — to spend time
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. track — a song
  15. cold — an illness
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. board — to get on
  19. pass — to succeed
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. board — a committee
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. arm — a part of something

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