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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. The tickets are free of ________________.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. bear — the animal
  3. board — a committee
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. charge — in control
  6. bound — certain
  7. rock — a stone
  8. bound — obliged
  9. board — to get on
  10. bound — tied together
  11. wound — an injury
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. cold — not warm
  16. wound — an injury
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. bear — the animal
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. charge — electricity
  22. cold — an illness
  23. charge — a price
  24. cold — the Cold War

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