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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 120 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. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. land — to come down
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. board — a committee
  5. current — happening now
  6. shower — rain
  7. band — a music group
  8. fall — to drop
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. current — of water
  11. land — a country
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. content — the amount
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. fall — to drop
  16. current — electric
  17. fall — the season
  18. board — to get on
  19. pitch — completely
  20. content — happy
  21. shower — to wash
  22. land — ground
  23. board — a flat piece
  24. band — a ring

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