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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 120 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. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. track — a path
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. stock — goods
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. pitch — completely
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. cell — a phone
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. board — to get on
  16. track — a song
  17. fork — in a road
  18. track — to keep track
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. stock — shares
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. cell — in biology
  24. pitch — a sports field

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