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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. He is an ace ________________.
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  18. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. board — to get on
  4. can — a tin
  5. stand — to bear
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. can — a tin
  10. root — of a plant
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. stand — for spectators
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. can — to be able to
  15. clip — to cut
  16. clip — a video
  17. board — a committee
  18. stand — on your feet
  19. clip — for paper
  20. root — the cause
  21. file — a tool
  22. file — a document
  23. root — of a word
  24. file — a line of people

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