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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. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. board — to get on
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. fall — to drop
  5. mine — for digging
  6. bat — the animal
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. race — a contest
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. fall — to drop
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. board — a flat piece
  21. race — the arms race
  22. race — humankind
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. board — a committee

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