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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. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  2. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. board — to get on
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. bark — to shout
  5. board — a committee
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. ground — the earth
  8. tube — a container
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. ground — crushed
  11. cold — an illness
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. dip — to sink
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. cold — not warm
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. tube — the underground
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. ground — a position
  21. dip — to dunk
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. board — a flat piece

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