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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 120 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: board · sharp · mark · bass · bat · net · cell · wind

  1. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. board — to get on
  4. mark — a grade
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. wind — moving air
  7. net — after costs
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. cell — in biology
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. mark — a trace
  15. bass — low music
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. board — a committee
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. bat — the animal
  20. net — for catching
  21. wind — moving air
  22. bass — the fish
  23. cell — a phone
  24. net — in sport

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