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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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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: cell · sharp · board · chip · wave · wake · arm · net

  1. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. board — to get on
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. sharp — clever
  4. board — a flat piece
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. net — for catching
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. chip — to eat
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. board — a committee
  13. cell — in biology
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. wake — a trail
  16. cell — a phone
  17. chip — for betting
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. net — in sport
  23. net — after costs
  24. chip — in a computer

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