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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. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  17. When was this ________________ built?
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. last — to go on
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. board — to get on
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. saw — the tool
  9. last — final
  10. last — finally
  11. bulb — for light
  12. shower — to wash
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. bulb — for light
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. temple — side of the head
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. saw — the tool
  22. shower — rain
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. perch — the fish

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