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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 116 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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  4. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  20. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  21. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. rock — a stone
  4. object — an aim
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. snap — to click
  7. march — the month
  8. march — the month
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. board — a committee
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. row — a line
  13. board — to get on
  14. chair — a leader
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. spring — of water
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. spring — the season
  19. object — to protest
  20. object — a thing
  21. rock — music
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. march — music
  24. row — to paddle

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