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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. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  6. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. Have you settled on a ________________?
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. board — a committee
  4. kid — to tease
  5. pass — to succeed
  6. pass — a permit
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. board — to get on
  9. branch — a division
  10. mark — a grade
  11. row — to paddle
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. mark — a trace
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. row — a line
  18. kid — child
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. rash — a series
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. date — the fruit
  23. rash — hasty
  24. pass — to spend time

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