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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. season — of the year
  4. bark — to shout
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. board — to get on
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. spell — magic
  9. spell — a short time
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. wound — an injury
  13. spell — letters
  14. board — a committee
  15. ground — a position
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. wound — an injury
  18. ground — the earth
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. ground — crushed
  24. trunk — of a tree

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