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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 116 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. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. pop — music
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. board — a committee
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. pop — to visit
  9. spell — a short time
  10. season — in sport
  11. board — to get on
  12. spell — letters
  13. pop — soda
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. kid — child
  16. row — to paddle
  17. kid — to tease
  18. present — there
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. season — of the year
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. row — a line
  23. spell — magic
  24. present — a gift

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