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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. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. bat — the animal
  3. ground — crushed
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. board — a committee
  6. ground — a position
  7. rock — to move gently
  8. rash — a series
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. rock — music
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. board — to get on
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. rash — hasty
  15. wake — a trail
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. rock — a stone
  20. toast — bread
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. toast — a drink to someone
  23. board — a flat piece
  24. ground — the earth

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