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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 124 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. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. We're on a ________________ here.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. board — to get on
  5. rash — a series
  6. roll — on a roll
  7. board — a committee
  8. roll — a cake
  9. cold — not warm
  10. court — of law
  11. roll — a list
  12. prune — to trim
  13. bank — for money
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. bank — of a river
  16. shower — rain
  17. rash — hasty
  18. shower — to wash
  19. bank — for money
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. prune — to trim
  22. court — of a king
  23. cold — an illness
  24. court — for sport

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