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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. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. board — a committee
  3. net — in sport
  4. craft — a skill
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. net — after costs
  8. board — to get on
  9. pit — in a race
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. pit — a hole
  14. net — for catching
  15. root — of a plant
  16. cold — not warm
  17. root — the cause
  18. craft — boats
  19. root — of a word
  20. band — a ring
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. band — a music group
  23. cold — an illness
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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