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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. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. My father caught me by the ________________.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. saw — the tool
  3. spell — magic
  4. spell — letters
  5. saw — the tool
  6. shower — to wash
  7. track — to keep track
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. swing — to play on
  10. prune — to trim
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. shower — rain
  13. board — to get on
  14. prune — to trim
  15. track — a song
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. spell — a short time
  21. track — a path
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. swing — music
  24. swing — in golf

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