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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. net — in sport
  3. board — a committee
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. net — for catching
  7. board — to get on
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. bear — the animal
  10. bear — the animal
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. ball — a great time
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. mate — a partner
  18. net — after costs
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. ball — a dance
  21. mate — to breed
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. trunk — of a car
  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