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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: chest · mine · board · season · rush · wake · capital · bay

  1. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  5. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. My mare is ________________ in color.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. chest — a box
  3. rush — hurry
  4. bay — to keep at bay
  5. bay — a part of the sea
  6. board — to get on
  7. chest — of your body
  8. capital — a city
  9. wake — a trail
  10. season — in sport
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. season — of the year
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. chest — of your body
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. mine — for digging
  19. bay — a horse colour
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. capital — money
  23. board — a committee
  24. rush — a thrill

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