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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. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. When was this ________________ built?
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. board — a committee
  3. chest — of your body
  4. bore — to drill
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. net — in sport
  7. board — to get on
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. cold — not warm
  11. temple — side of the head
  12. cold — an illness
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. chest — a box
  15. bore — to tire
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. net — for catching
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. club — for dancing
  21. chest — of your body
  22. club — for golf
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. net — after costs

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