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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. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. My father caught me by the ________________.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. mark — a grade
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. wind — moving air
  7. race — a contest
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. race — humankind
  10. last — final
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. board — to get on
  17. last — finally
  18. pound — a weight
  19. wound — an injury
  20. race — the arms race
  21. mark — a trace
  22. wind — moving air
  23. wound — an injury
  24. last — to go on

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