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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. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — to get on
  2. staff — employees
  3. pitch — completely
  4. bark — to shout
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. game — a match
  7. field — for sport
  8. staff — employees
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. degree — temperature
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. field — a subject
  13. board — a committee
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. board — a flat piece
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. degree — from a university
  19. staff — a stick
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. game — wild animals
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. degree — an amount
  24. field — farmland

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