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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: snap · game · board · wind · current · dip · bat · bark

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  21. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. current — happening now
  4. bat — the animal
  5. board — a committee
  6. board — to get on
  7. bark — to shout
  8. current — of water
  9. wind — moving air
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. game — a match
  16. current — electric
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. game — wild animals
  20. dip — a sauce
  21. dip — to dunk
  22. snap — to click
  23. dip — to sink
  24. wind — to turn a key

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