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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: land · board · rest · game · root · pitch · hand · safe

  1. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  20. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. game — a match
  3. rest — a break
  4. board — to get on
  5. board — a committee
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. root — of a word
  9. game — wild animals
  10. land — a country
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. rest — what's left
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. land — to come down
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. land — ground
  18. hand — in cards
  19. safe — a strongbox
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. root — of a plant
  22. hand — help
  23. pitch — completely
  24. root — the cause

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