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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. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. board — to get on
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. mine — for digging
  5. band — a music group
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. fork — in a road
  11. board — a committee
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. band — a ring
  14. tube — the underground
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. tube — a container
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. march — music
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. sharp — clever
  22. march — the month
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. march — the month

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