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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. spring — a coil
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. spring — of water
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. row — a line
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. board — a committee
  11. board — to get on
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. fork — in a road
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. row — to paddle
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. ball — a dance
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. spring — the season
  21. ball — a great time
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. pitch — completely

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