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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 116 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: bark · board · craft · fine · staff · wind · object · file

  1. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. staff — employees
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. staff — employees
  6. wind — moving air
  7. craft — boats
  8. object — to protest
  9. craft — a skill
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. board — a committee
  12. wind — moving air
  13. file — a tool
  14. fine — high quality
  15. file — a line of people
  16. bark — to shout
  17. fine — all right
  18. object — a thing
  19. board — to get on
  20. file — a document
  21. object — an aim
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. staff — a stick

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