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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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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: board · cell · march · cap · perch · pit · drill · leaves

  1. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  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. pit — a fruit stone
  2. board — to get on
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. march — the month
  6. drill — the tool
  7. pit — a hole
  8. perch — the fish
  9. cell — in biology
  10. pit — in a race
  11. cap — a lid
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. march — the month
  15. march — music
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. drill — army training
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. leaves — to go away
  20. cap — a hat
  21. cap — of ice
  22. cell — a phone
  23. drill — a practice
  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