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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 116 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. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. firm — steady
  3. tube — the underground
  4. board — a committee
  5. board — to get on
  6. last — final
  7. stock — shares
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. last — finally
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. last — to go on
  14. stock — goods
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. tube — a container
  18. net — in sport
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. net — for catching
  21. net — after costs
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. bat — the animal
  24. firm — a company

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