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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. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  12. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. last — final
  4. rest — what's left
  5. jam — in traffic
  6. object — to protest
  7. rash — hasty
  8. jam — a tight spot
  9. bat — the animal
  10. board — a committee
  11. jam — to spread on bread
  12. object — an aim
  13. last — to go on
  14. last — finally
  15. stock — goods
  16. board — to get on
  17. stock — shares
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. rest — a break
  20. rash — a series
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. object — a thing
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. rest — what's left

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