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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
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: bark · court · chest · charge · row · fan · board · present

  1. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. present — a gift
  3. charge — a price
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. bark — to shout
  8. chest — of your body
  9. board — to get on
  10. chest — a box
  11. court — for sport
  12. court — of a king
  13. court — of law
  14. charge — in control
  15. row — to paddle
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. chest — of your body
  18. present — the time now
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. row — a line
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. board — a committee
  23. charge — electricity
  24. present — there

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