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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. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. charge — a price
  3. staff — a stick
  4. spring — of water
  5. staff — employees
  6. staff — employees
  7. root — of a word
  8. root — of a plant
  9. field — farmland
  10. mine — for digging
  11. board — a committee
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. charge — electricity
  15. charge — in control
  16. spring — the season
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. root — the cause
  19. field — a subject
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. spring — a coil
  23. board — to get on
  24. field — for sport

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