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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. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. The ________________ took off on time.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. board — to get on
  3. court — for sport
  4. board — a committee
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. drill — the tool
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. drill — army training
  10. bark — to shout
  11. land — to come down
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. plane — in geometry
  14. plane — a tool
  15. plane — an aircraft
  16. court — of a king
  17. court — of law
  18. drill — a practice
  19. land — ground
  20. wound — an injury
  21. land — a country
  22. wound — an injury
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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