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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. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. field — farmland
  8. board — to get on
  9. stock — goods
  10. spell — a short time
  11. board — a committee
  12. field — for sport
  13. spell — letters
  14. sharp — clever
  15. rule — a law
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. rule — government
  18. spell — magic
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. field — a subject
  22. stock — shares
  23. hide — animal skin
  24. rule — to rule out

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