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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. The tickets are free of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. board — a committee
  3. prune — to trim
  4. cell — in biology
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. rush — hurry
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. hand — in cards
  11. prune — to trim
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. board — to get on
  14. tear — from crying
  15. charge — electricity
  16. tear — to rip
  17. tear — from crying
  18. cell — a phone
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. charge — in control
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. pitch — completely
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. charge — a price

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