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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. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  22. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. stock — shares
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. board — a flat piece
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. mug — to rob
  7. rock — music
  8. squash — the sport
  9. drill — the tool
  10. season — of the year
  11. season — in sport
  12. rock — a stone
  13. drill — a practice
  14. clip — to cut
  15. clip — for paper
  16. squash — to crush
  17. clip — a video
  18. mug — a cup
  19. board — to get on
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. rock — to move gently
  22. mug — a face
  23. stock — goods
  24. drill — army training

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