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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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Word bank
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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: clip · wound · last · charge · board · net · bowl · sharp

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. The tickets are free of ________________.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. clip — to cut
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. board — a committee
  7. net — for catching
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. clip — a video
  11. board — to get on
  12. charge — in control
  13. wound — an injury
  14. clip — for paper
  15. charge — electricity
  16. last — to go on
  17. charge — a price
  18. last — final
  19. net — after costs
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. sharp — clever
  23. wound — an injury
  24. net — in sport

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