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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. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. board — to get on
  2. rest — what's left
  3. stem — to come from
  4. capital — a city
  5. bound — obliged
  6. board — a committee
  7. capital — money
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. tear — to rip
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. date — the fruit
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. tear — from crying
  15. bound — certain
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. kid — to tease
  18. tear — from crying
  19. kid — child
  20. bound — tied together
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. rest — what's left
  23. rest — a break
  24. date — on the calendar

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