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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: tear · bear · board · ground · cell · toast

  1. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  15. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. ground — the earth
  3. ground — crushed
  4. toast — a drink to someone
  5. tear — from crying
  6. cell — in biology
  7. board — to get on
  8. ground — a position
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. tear — to rip
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. bear — the animal
  13. cell — a phone
  14. toast — the most admired
  15. toast — bread
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. tear — from crying
  18. bear — the animal

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