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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: wound · pass · straw · kid · roll · toast · board · capital

  1. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  5. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. We're on a ________________ here.
  8. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  23. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  24. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. pass — a permit
  3. capital — a city
  4. toast — bread
  5. pass — to spend time
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. roll — on a roll
  8. toast — a drink to someone
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. kid — to tease
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. wound — an injury
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. roll — a list
  17. capital — money
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. roll — a cake
  20. kid — child
  21. wound — an injury
  22. board — to get on
  23. toast — the most admired
  24. pass — to succeed

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