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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. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — with your hand
  2. tube — the underground
  3. tube — a container
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. board — a committee
  6. bat — the animal
  7. degree — from a university
  8. race — humankind
  9. race — a contest
  10. board — to get on
  11. march — the month
  12. race — the arms race
  13. bound — tied together
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. march — music
  16. bound — certain
  17. bound — obliged
  18. degree — an amount
  19. march — the month
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. degree — temperature
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. board — a flat piece

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