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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: ball · wind · sharp · pit · leaves · board · staff · shower

  1. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. staff — employees
  3. shower — rain
  4. ball — a great time
  5. shower — to wash
  6. staff — a stick
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. board — to get on
  11. sharp — clever
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. pit — in a race
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. board — a committee
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. pit — a hole
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. wind — moving air
  21. wind — moving air
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. staff — employees

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