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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. The water is too ________________.
  2. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  24. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. rock — a stone
  3. can — a tin
  4. club — a group
  5. key — for a lock
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. rock — to move gently
  8. court — for sport
  9. court — of a king
  10. bark — to shout
  11. club — for dancing
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. cold — an illness
  15. key — the most important part
  16. club — for golf
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. rock — music
  19. board — a committee
  20. key — in music
  21. court — of law
  22. can — a tin
  23. can — to be able to
  24. board — to get on

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