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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: sharp · deal · board · march · band · object · prune · squash

  1. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. board — a committee
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. deal — an agreement
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. march — the month
  7. prune — to trim
  8. squash — to crush
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. object — an aim
  11. march — music
  12. march — the month
  13. board — to get on
  14. band — a ring
  15. band — a music group
  16. object — to protest
  17. sharp — clever
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. object — a thing
  20. prune — to trim
  21. deal — to handle
  22. squash — the sport
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. squash — the vegetable

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