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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. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. chest — of your body
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. board — a committee
  5. chest — a box
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. season — in sport
  8. season — of the year
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. drill — a practice
  12. chest — of your body
  13. shower — to wash
  14. drill — army training
  15. chair — a leader
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. root — of a word
  18. lean — thin
  19. lean — to bend
  20. root — of a plant
  21. board — to get on
  22. shower — rain
  23. drill — the tool
  24. root — the cause

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