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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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. My father caught me by the ________________.
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. board — to get on
  3. board — a committee
  4. spell — letters
  5. net — after costs
  6. spring — of water
  7. rock — to move gently
  8. kid — to tease
  9. branch — a division
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. spring — a coil
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. rock — music
  15. net — in sport
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. spell — a short time
  18. spell — magic
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. spring — the season
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. rock — a stone
  23. kid — child
  24. arm — part of the body

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