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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. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. board — a committee
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. sharp — clever
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. field — a subject
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. board — to get on
  12. key — the most important part
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. rock — music
  16. field — farmland
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. key — for a lock
  20. rock — a stone
  21. field — for sport
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. pound — a weight
  24. key — in music

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