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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. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. My mare is ________________ in color.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  20. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  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. board — a flat piece
  2. board — to get on
  3. degree — temperature
  4. degree — an amount
  5. row — a line
  6. cell — a phone
  7. file — a tool
  8. bay — a part of the sea
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. cell — in biology
  11. degree — from a university
  12. face — to confront
  13. face — part of the head
  14. bay — a horse colour
  15. face — to point toward
  16. file — a line of people
  17. file — a document
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. bay — to keep at bay
  20. fine — all right
  21. row — to paddle
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. fine — high quality
  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