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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. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. object — a thing
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. cold — not warm
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. march — music
  6. game — a match
  7. board — to get on
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. present — the time now
  11. present — there
  12. present — a gift
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. game — wild animals
  15. march — the month
  16. content — happy
  17. content — the amount
  18. board — a committee
  19. object — an aim
  20. cold — an illness
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. march — the month
  23. object — to protest
  24. sharp — clever

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