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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 120 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. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  3. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. board — a committee
  3. firm — decided
  4. sharp — clever
  5. band — a ring
  6. bat — the animal
  7. content — happy
  8. vault — a safe
  9. firm — steady
  10. mate — to breed
  11. band — a music group
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. board — to get on
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. content — the amount
  18. mate — a partner
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. firm — a company
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. mate — a friend
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. bat — in an idiom

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