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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. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. saw — the tool
  3. saw — the tool
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. wind — moving air
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. wind — moving air
  12. file — a document
  13. board — to get on
  14. file — a tool
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. fork — in a road
  21. file — a line of people
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. lash — an eyelash

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