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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 116 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 captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — to get on
  2. sharp — clever
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. cold — not warm
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. club — a group
  7. bear — to put up with
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. bear — the animal
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. club — for dancing
  14. board — a committee
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. cold — an illness
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. plane — a tool
  21. bark — to shout
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. club — for golf
  24. bear — the animal

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