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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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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: wave · board · fan · pitch · wound · mine · last · kid

  1. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. pitch — completely
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. board — to get on
  6. wound — an injury
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. last — finally
  9. last — to go on
  10. wound — an injury
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. mine — for digging
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. kid — to tease
  17. kid — child
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. last — final
  24. board — a committee

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