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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
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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: sharp · wound · board · fall · game · snap · dip · march

  1. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. wound — an injury
  3. board — a committee
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. game — a match
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. board — to get on
  9. fall — the season
  10. dip — to sink
  11. fall — to drop
  12. march — the month
  13. game — wild animals
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. sharp — clever
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. wound — an injury
  19. snap — to click
  20. dip — a sauce
  21. march — music
  22. march — the month
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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