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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: mug · field · club · wind · clip · toast · board · rest

  1. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  14. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  15. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. clip — for paper
  4. club — for dancing
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. rest — what's left
  7. clip — a video
  8. board — a committee
  9. club — for golf
  10. field — farmland
  11. mug — a cup
  12. mug — to rob
  13. toast — a drink to someone
  14. mug — a face
  15. toast — the most admired
  16. rest — what's left
  17. club — a group
  18. wind — moving air
  19. clip — to cut
  20. toast — bread
  21. field — a subject
  22. wind — moving air
  23. rest — a break
  24. board — to get on

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