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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. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. chair — a leader
  4. board — to get on
  5. key — the most important part
  6. board — a committee
  7. wound — an injury
  8. fork — in a road
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. key — for a lock
  11. rock — a stone
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. wound — an injury
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. row — a line
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. row — to paddle
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. key — in music
  23. rock — music
  24. fork — a garden tool

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