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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 King held a masked ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  23. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. kid — to tease
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. board — a flat piece
  5. wound — an injury
  6. ball — a great time
  7. board — a committee
  8. present — the time now
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. capital — a city
  12. present — a gift
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. present — there
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. wound — an injury
  19. kid — child
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. board — to get on
  22. wave — a sudden rise
  23. wave — with your hand
  24. capital — money

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