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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: racket · season · board · cold · chest · jam · march · safe

  1. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  22. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. march — the month
  3. march — the month
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. season — in sport
  6. board — a committee
  7. safe — a strongbox
  8. chest — a box
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. cold — not warm
  13. march — music
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. board — a flat piece
  16. season — of the year
  17. chest — of your body
  18. jam — to spread on bread
  19. cold — an illness
  20. chest — of your body
  21. jam — a tight spot
  22. jam — in traffic
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. board — to get on

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