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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 116 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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  16. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. land — ground
  7. game — a match
  8. land — to come down
  9. spell — letters
  10. drill — army training
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. rock — a stone
  13. game — wild animals
  14. mate — a friend
  15. rock — music
  16. board — to get on
  17. spell — magic
  18. drill — a practice
  19. drill — the tool
  20. mate — a partner
  21. spell — a short time
  22. land — a country
  23. mate — to breed
  24. fan — a supporter

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