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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. capital — a city
  3. vault — a safe
  4. rash — a series
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. vault — an arched ceiling
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. board — to get on
  10. cue — a signal
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. cue — a hint
  13. cell — a phone
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. capital — money
  16. perch — the fish
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. rash — hasty
  19. cue — for pool
  20. pit — in a race
  21. cell — in biology
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. pit — a hole
  24. cell — in a prison

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