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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. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  16. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. I have a corn on my right ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. cell — in biology
  3. board — a committee
  4. foot — a measure
  5. present — there
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. present — a gift
  8. plane — a tool
  9. bass — low music
  10. cell — a phone
  11. bass — the fish
  12. degree — temperature
  13. snap — to click
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. foot — the bottom
  16. board — to get on
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. present — the time now
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. degree — from a university
  23. degree — an amount
  24. foot — part of the body

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