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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. I've got to change the light ________________.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. board — to get on
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. craft — a skill
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. bulb — for light
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. bulb — for light
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. chest — of your body
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. pitch — completely
  15. spell — letters
  16. snap — to click
  17. craft — boats
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. chest — a box
  20. spell — a short time
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. chest — of your body
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. spell — magic

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