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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. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. march — music
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. track — a path
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. board — a committee
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. bound — obliged
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. track — a song
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. capital — money
  13. board — to get on
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. capital — a city
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. track — to keep track
  18. bound — certain
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. bound — tied together
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. march — the month
  24. march — the month

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