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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 120 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: track · stock · chest · row · plane · board · sharp · press

  1. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. The ________________ took off on time.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. press — a publisher
  3. track — to keep track
  4. board — to get on
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. row — a line
  7. chest — a box
  8. track — a song
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. plane — a tool
  11. chest — of your body
  12. sharp — clever
  13. stock — shares
  14. stock — goods
  15. press — newspapers
  16. track — a path
  17. plane — an aircraft
  18. row — to paddle
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. press — to push
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. chest — of your body
  24. sharp — with an edge

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