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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. spell — magic
  4. board — a flat piece
  5. file — a document
  6. dip — to sink
  7. spell — a short time
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. board — a committee
  10. board — to get on
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. field — farmland
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. ruler — a monarch
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. file — a line of people
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. wound — an injury
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. field — a subject
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. file — a tool
  23. field — for sport
  24. wound — an injury

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