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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: chair · tear · lash · board · plane · content · drill · capital

  1. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  2. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. The ________________ took off on time.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. board — to get on
  2. plane — a tool
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. drill — the tool
  5. plane — an aircraft
  6. content — the amount
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. capital — money
  11. chair — a leader
  12. drill — a practice
  13. content — happy
  14. board — a committee
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. capital — a city
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. tear — to rip
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. tear — from crying
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. drill — army training
  24. tear — from crying

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