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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. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. We're on a ________________ here.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. shower — to wash
  3. foot — a measure
  4. row — to paddle
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. track — a song
  8. game — wild animals
  9. board — to get on
  10. shower — rain
  11. track — a path
  12. foot — part of the body
  13. row — a line
  14. roll — on a roll
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. track — to keep track
  17. board — a committee
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. pitch — completely
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. roll — a list
  23. game — a match
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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