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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. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. track — to keep track
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. track — a song
  6. kid — to tease
  7. bat — the animal
  8. bulb — of a plant
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. board — to get on
  11. bulb — for light
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. land — ground
  17. kid — child
  18. season — in sport
  19. season — of the year
  20. bulb — for light
  21. board — a committee
  22. land — to come down
  23. land — a country
  24. track — a path

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